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By: Glenn S. Johnson on Thu Mar 13, 2008

It was Winston Churchill who famously quipped that “Dogs look up at us. Cats look down at us. Pigs treat us as equals,” and I feel confident enough in my experience to append “But horses look at us with love and understanding.”

Those of us blessed enough to have owned or communed with a horse, understand that, properly maintained, the relationship between horse and human can often be just as strong, if not stronger, than the bond between human and human. Far from alienating us from humankind, however; I am of the belief that those of us who have experienced such an immensely emotional and resonant connection with a horse are better able to understand ourselves specifically, and thus humankind as a whole.
That being said, as Pat Benatar sang: love is a battlefield, and every battlefield needs a cavalry. My steed of choice is the Norwegian Fjord (known in its homeland as a Fjording), a stocky, hearty, and muscular breed originating in the mountain ranges of western Norway, possessing dun color and, unique to horses bearing the dun gene, with a two-toned tail and mane, a minimal expression of the rabicano gene.

There is a very faintly recalled myth surrounding the Fjord and Loki, “the conniver of all fraud”, the shape-shifting mischievous God so prevalent in Norse mythology. It is said by some that Loki disguised himself as a Fjord in order that he may assume the disguise of a particular Fjord horse (his name is not recorded) who was engaging in indiscreet liaisons with Angrboda, a giantess who had bore Loki three children. Late one evening, after Loki had captured the Fjord horse and slaughtered him, Loki assumed his form and traveled to the intimate rendezvous piont . Not being experienced in manipulating the equine body, nor wielding such an uncommonly large member, Loki was immediately found out, and a furious Angrboda flew into a rage, condemning him to maintain the form of a Fjord horse and roam the mountain ranges alone for all eternity. Loki’s curse was only lifted by the interlocution on his behalf of his son Fenrir, a giant wolf who pleaded with his mother to lift the curse. Angrboda, out of devotion to her son, thus set Loki free, but forced Loki’s hair to roan whenever he shape-shifted, reminding all of the trickery he had perpetrated, and often times, exposing his trickery. And thus, a residue of Loki and his mischief is the source of the previously mentioned rabicano gene, which causes the roan in the coat of the Fjord.

It must also be noted that many of the breed may fall below the height necessary to be considered a horse, but as Danny Devito is a man, and not a dwarf, so is the Fjord a horse, and not a pony.
The Fjord is an ancient breed, with a long recorded history of pure-breeding. Research seems to indicate that the horses migrated to Norway and were domesticated at around or before 1000 BCE, and Viking burial ground excavations reveal the presence of Fjords and evidence of selective breeding at about 2,000 years ago.

The Fjord breed is renowned for its broad capabilities – talented in all ranges of the equine compass. Owing to their extraordinary versatility, the life of a Fjord owner is never one of monotony or boredom. Riders of the Fjord often experience rapid progression in many different areas, and are often some of the most skilled at crossing into the various disciplines of equestrianism.

The finesse and physicality of the Fjord will never obscure the soulful and kind nature of the Fjord, however, and friendship with a Fjord is moving and deep, with rare taxing moments that often end in moments of personal revelation, rather than in frustration with the animal. Fjords were bred in Norway to be easily kept, for their calm disposition, and strong work ethic for Scandinavian farm life, they are also magnificent pleasure drivers and strong riding horses. They excel in all disciplines.

With their laid-back personalities, the Fjord takes all events of life in stride and with the wide-eyed curiosity of a child. This willingness to learn and experience has given them an edge in competition against traditionally favored breeds, and I am constantly amused and delighted every day by my Fjords, and the clever Norwegian Fjord horse names people come up with for them.

Glenn S. Johnson is a horse breeder and Norse mythology buff in Montana.