Breed Information

The Friesian horse originates from the northern province of The Netherlands called Friesland. The original and world wide Friesian studbook KFPS is located in Drachten, Friesland and is the oldest Dutch studbook. It has a good 40,000 Friesians registered worldwide of which some 5,000 are located in the United States.

Although the studbook only dates back to 1879, the Friesian itself is many centuries older, with evidence of the Friesian dating back to the dark ages around the year 1000.

What is unique about the breed is not just that it looks so uniform with the black coat, feathers, and flowing mane and tail but that it has strict standards, stallion testings that only allow approved stallions to breed, as well as the many statistics and policies that are gathered, developed, and in place to aid the Friesian enthusiasts in their breeding and show efforts while improving and safeguarding the breed.

The Friesian horse was originally imported to North America in the seventeenth century but the breed was totally lost in North America due to crossbreeding. The Friesian was not reintroduced to North America until 1974.

The Friesian went through several crises and near extinctions but, thanks to its die-hard fans and the unparalleled work of the KFPS studbook, the Friesian horse is now doing better than ever.