Most of the Nordic countries were primarily agrarian until the beginning of this century. The farms were small, with a few exceptions, and the farmers often poor. And to work the farms, they needed horsepower, of sturdy and low maintenance type.

Even the cities were in need of horsepower to transport both people and goods. Often the economic situation in the city was even worse than in the countryside. Here too, was a need for horses that could do a lot of work without requiring too much expensive food.

Each of the Nordic countries, despite their close proximity to each other, developed their own unique horsebreeds, each adapted to the specific geographic conditions of its home country

FINLAND

The Finnish Universal horse is found in both a heavy and a light version and is considered to be a cross between an indigenous pony and a Finnish draft horse. The heavy type has mostly been used on farms and in forest. The lighter type is a popular trotting horse. Both stand at 15.2 hands and colors are chestnut, bay, brown and black.