This message is from: "Norsk Wood Works" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
This message is from Phillip Odden in Northwestern Wisconsin. The Official Handbook for Fjord Horse Judges was compiled by Fjord Horse International. There are translations in several languages. The one I have is in English but the extensive terms for horse anatomy and the relative importance with regards to conformation are given in 6 languages, French being one of them. I find this handbook very useful. It can be ordered from the FHI representative in Germany I believe. Our registrar Mike May has the ordering information I think. I agree with Pat Holland and Patti Jo in that horses from certain bloodlines lend themselves to different activities. Antidotal evidence of the traits for individuals of these bloodlines is interesting and useful. However it is difficult to compare in that people may lack objectivity when evaluating horses close to them. Another problem is that each handler's expectations of a horse may differ. In North America the NFHR evaluation process is the best way to level the playing field the way I see it. With standard tests we can evaluate how each horse does compared to the breed standard. With FHI the tests will become more standard throughout the world. So if someone wants to buy a horse anywhere in the world, and it has been evaluated, you will have a pretty good idea of how that horse stacks up against the fjord breed standard. Over the years one can follow bloodlines of evaluated horses and have a tool to predict what you might expect from that bloodline. A written narrative to support the raw numbers would also be very helpful. The Norwegians and probably other National Registries have been doing this for some time. With more influential stallions the information is more complete because there are several evaluation reports on the offspring as well. In America we have only just begun and the number of evaluated animals is not great compared to the number of fjords out there. If you want more objective information about bloodlines then we need to have more animals evaluated. Granted we could do more in getting the information from the evaluations out sooner. I would like to see the information from an evaluation posted on the web within a week or even a day of the evaluation. All this takes time, expense, and people who are willing to make it happen. If you want an objective narrative about an animal someone has to write it and it has to say more than the horse was real nice, liked people, and didn't bite when you fed them carrots. Judging the disposition and character of an animal takes more than a twenty minute look at any point in time. I suppose that is why some countries use a five or six week station test with a team of evaluators to evaluate stallions. Given our problems of only limited numbers of horses being evaluated, and results not being published in a timely manner, we have fewer options. Under the circumstances perhaps the best way to understand bloodlines is to use the standardized evaluation results and ask reputable trainers and breeders about the horses they are using. Not all breeders train and use their horses. Go to shows or farms where fjords are used. Pay attention to how the horse is handled and what the handler expects from the horse. Will the horse stand still right out of the stall or does the handler have to work it down before it can be ridden or hitched? This is an interesting topic and very important to the future of our breed. Respectfully, Phillip Odden
