Finnhorse

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Image:Suomenhevonen.jpg

The Finnhorse or Finnish Horse (Finnish: suomenhevonen, pet name: suokki) belongs to general horse breeds, having both warmblood and heavier draft blood influence and characteristics. The breed is also called the Finnish Universal in English, because it is said to fulfill all needs for horses in Finland, from agricultural work to speedy harness races to riding. The Finnhorse is a descendant of the northern European domestic horse and resembles such breeds as the Estonian Native, but its exact descent is unclear. The Finnhorse is purebred; no outside influences have been allowed since the studbook of the breed was established in 1907. (While accidental and even intentional Finnhorse crosses are born sometimes, the resulting animals tend to neither look good nor perform well.) The earliest signs of this horse are dated back to the Bronze Age, and its known history is about a thousand years old. It has played an important part in all the events of the Finnish history, being used for various purposes in the army and as a workhorse.

Nowadays approximately 75 % of Finnhorses are used in harness racing, with riding uses coming next. Finnhorse harness races have been held in Finland since the second half of the 19th century, with the official annual Finnhorse racing championships (Kuninkuusravit) starting in 1924, and they continue to be a popular spectator (and betting) sport. Many Finnhorses are used for multiple purposes, starting their career in trotting races and later moving on to riding, sometimes with considerable success. Finnhorses take part in both their own competitions and open classes in dressage, show jumping and eventing and are also used in endurance riding, Western riding and - quite successfully - combined driving. There are few draft horses left, and the breed would probably not have survived had it not been used for trotting races as well as agricultural work. There are now about 20,000 Finnhorses in Finland, and about 1,000 foals born every year. In the 1950s, there were 400,000 Finnhorses, most of them drafts; the huge decline in their numbers (due to diminishing demand for horses for agricultural work) stopped in the 1980s, however, and the Finnhorse population is now slowly increasing.

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There are few Finnhorses outside Finland, although they have been imported in small numbers to, e.g., Germany and some small-scale breeding has also taken place abroad.

Having a compliant nature, the Finnhorse is easily handled and has considerable speed, liveliness, endurance and longevity. It is dry and strongly muscled, with hard legs and good hooves. The main color is chestnut, often flaxen and with white markings commonly found on the face and legs. Other colors are bay and black and more rarely gray, palomino or silver dapple. Finnhorses typically stand 15-17 hands (150-170 cm) high, but pony-sized (under 148 cm high) Finnhorses are also bred.

A Finnhorse, Jehun Viima [1] (driven by Heidi Sinda), was a member of the Finnish singles driving team that came 2nd at the driving world championships in Conty, France in 2002. Another Finnhorse, Uusi-Helinä (ridden by Ritva Lampinen), successfully finished the endurance riding world championship competition in Stockholm, Sweden in 1990, coming 28th. The Finnhorse is not only one of the most versatile horse breed in the world, but also one of the fastest coldblood breeds. The Finnhorse trot-racing record 1.19,4a is held by the stallion Sipori [2].