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User Login Email: Password:    » Forgot Password?  » New Member Sign Up Visitors Online: Today's Visits: Yesterday's Visits: Horses Menu Home Horses For Sale Welcome to Icelandic ! You are here: Terrific-Horses.com > Horse Breeds > Icelandic Book Search: Icelandic Description The Icelandic Horse came to Iceland is the longboats of the Norseman who settled there between 860 and 935 A.D. When the Icelanders made an attempt in 930 A.D. to add eastern blood to the stock the results proved so disastrous it was prohibited to import any horses. Therefore the stock remained extremely pure with no outside blood for over 800 years. Breeding selection mainly consisted of fights between stallions. In 1879 the famous breeding area in northern Iceland, Skagafjordur, began selective breeding on a scale to improve the quality of the five gaits peculiar to the Icelandic Horse. There were 15 basic types and combinations and these horses were often bred based on these criteria. The Icelandic Horses live outside all year in a semi-feral state, without receiving any additional feed to keep them going through the ruthless winter. The Icelandic Horses are used for a variety of things including all sorts of work. They are used in events such as cross-country, racing, and competing in dressage. These horses are even kept for meat. Cattle stock cannot survive winter in Iceland therefore horse flesh has always been the staple of the Icelandic diet. Google Ads

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