Swedish Polled
In its own language: Svensk Kullig Boskap
A hornless red dairy cow from Sweden, formed in 1937 from the Rödkulla and Fjäll breeds
The Swedish Polled, or SKB, is a polled dairy breed of taurine cattle created in 1937 by combining two Swedish breeds, the Swedish Red Polled and the mountain Fjäll. It is solid red or red and white, without horns, and adapted to Sweden's mountains, where it milks as a small part of the national herd.
- Created in 1937 by merging the Swedish Red Polled with the Fjäll mountain breed
- Breeders refused the merge and kept the two bloodlines separate
- Polled: the animals are hornless, and the trait is in the name
- 3,074 head reported in 2014; FAO listed it as not at risk in 2007
- Makes up about 0.5% of Sweden's national dairy herd
What do Swedish Polled cattle look like?
The Swedish Polled is a medium-sized cow of taurine stock, Bos taurus without the zebu hump. Its clearest feature sits at the head: it is polled, meaning the animals are hornless. The coat comes in two forms, a plain solid red or red and white. Cows stand about 120 cm at the withers, the ridge between the shoulder blades, and weigh near 400 kg. Bulls are bigger, at roughly 130 cm and 650 kg. It is kept as a dairy animal and suits Sweden's mountain country, though nationally it is uncommon, at about one milking cow in two hundred.
Where does the Swedish Polled come from?
In 1937 two quite different Swedish cattle were brought together under a single name, the Swedish Polled: the Swedish Red Polled, called Rödkulla in its home country, and the Fjällras, a mountain breed. The aim was one merged polled population. The breeders themselves refused to accept the new arrangement, and went on keeping the two bloodlines apart just as before. A society for the Rödkulla, Sveriges Rödkulleförening, was formed in the 1960s, and a matching body for the Fjäll, Föreningen Svensk Fjällrasavel, in 1996. In 2004 the Rödkulla gained official recognition, with breed number 40 from Statens Jordbruksverk, the Swedish board of agriculture. The Fjäll has since divided into two sub-breeds, Fjällnära Boskap and Svensk Fjällras.
What the Swedish Polled is known for
The most distinctive trait is in the name: these cattle are polled, meaning they carry no horns at all. Beyond that, the breed is noted for coping well with mountain conditions, an inheritance from its Fjäll parent, itself a mountain type. In numbers it is a minor player, supplying only about half a percent of Sweden's dairy milk, so it is a cow the casual farm visitor rarely meets. The red or red-and-white coat is plain and working-like, a match for an upland milking cow.
How the Swedish Polled is bred and kept
Breeding never followed the official plan. The Swedish Polled was set up in 1937 as one breed, yet its keepers held the Rödkulla and Fjäll bloodlines apart, much as they had before the merge. Each line grew its own society: Sveriges Rödkulleförening for the Rödkulla in the 1960s, and Föreningen Svensk Fjällrasavel for the Fjäll in 1996. Formal recognition arrived for the Rödkulla in 2004, when Statens Jordbruksverk, the Swedish board of agriculture, assigned it breed number 40. On the Fjäll side, two types are now reported separately to the international breed database DAD-IS: Fjällnära Boskap and Svensk Fjällras. In practice, anyone breeding these cattle works with a family of related lines rather than one population.
Swedish Polled, drawn
What the Swedish Polled is kept for
The Swedish Polled is a dairy breed, kept for its milk. It holds only a small place in the national herd: about 0.5% of Sweden's dairy cows, roughly one animal in every two hundred. The people who keep it have often done so out of loyalty to the old separate lines, the Rödkulla and the Fjäll, which the 1937 merger was meant to sweep together. That persistence kept both parent stocks alive, and in time each won fresh standing in its own right.
The land and climate of the Swedish Polled
This is cattle for Sweden's mountains. The breed is described as well adapted to mountain conditions, and its Fjäll parent is a mountain breed in its own right, so the upland habit runs deep. Mountain country is demanding ground for a dairy cow, and the animals here are shaped for it. Across Sweden as a whole they are a minority presence on ordinary dairy farms, contributing only about 0.5% of the national milking herd.
Who keeps the Swedish Polled
The story of this breed is really a story about its keepers. When the Swedish Polled was created in 1937, the breeders declined to go along with it. They went on keeping Rödkulla and Fjäll bloodlines separate, exactly as before, and built societies of their own: Sveriges Rödkulleförening for the Rödkulla in the 1960s, and Föreningen Svensk Fjällrasavel for the Fjäll in 1996. That stubbornness paid off. The Rödkulla won official recognition in 2004, with breed number 40 from the Swedish board of agriculture, while the Fjäll now exists as two recorded types, Fjällnära Boskap and Svensk Fjällras. The merged name survives, but the loyalty of the breeders kept the parts distinct.
At a glance: where it belongs
Land and climate
Numbers, conservation and the herd book
In 2014, 3,074 animals were reported for the breed. The FAO's 2007 assessment listed it as not at risk. Within Sweden it remains a thin thread in dairying, at roughly 0.5% of the national dairy herd. Its paperwork is unusually tangled for so small a breed: two societies serve the parent lines, and the Rödkulla's own breed number, 40, came from Statens Jordbruksverk, the Swedish board of agriculture, only in 2004.
Questions people ask about Swedish Polled
Where does the Swedish Polled come from?
It comes from Sweden. In 1937 two older Swedish breeds, the Swedish Red Polled, or Rödkulla, and the mountain Fjäll, were combined under one name. The keepers never accepted the merge, so the parent lines live on separately to this day.
What is the Swedish Polled kept for?
It is a dairy breed, kept for milk. It is a rare sight nationally, making up only about 0.5% of Sweden's dairy herd, roughly one cow in every two hundred.
Why is it called polled?
Polled means hornless: these cattle carry no horns, and the trait sits in their name. One parent breed, the Swedish Red Polled, shares the word. The other parent, the Fjäll, is a Swedish mountain breed, and the two were joined under the SKB name in 1937.
What does a Swedish Polled cow look like?
A medium-sized taurine cow with a plain solid red or red-and-white coat and no horns. Cows weigh about 400 kg and stand near 120 cm at the withers; bulls reach around 650 kg and 130 cm.
Is the Swedish Polled endangered?
No. The FAO recorded it as not at risk in 2007, and 3,074 animals were reported in 2014. Still, it is a small breed, contributing only about half a percent of Sweden's dairy herd.
Good reading and sources
The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Swedish Polled", written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, and from its Wikidata record (CC0). EveryCow rewrote the text in its own words, with AI assistance, and compares every page with the article to make sure no passage is copied. It may be reused under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with a link back.
It may contain mistakes. Sizes, colours and customs differ from one herd, valley or breeder to the next. Folk beliefs are described as tradition, never as advice. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-16.
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