Chèvre des Pyrénées
The Pyrenean goat is an indigenous breed that has traditionally been raised throughout the entirety of the Pyrenees Mountains. The breed, whose long fur is usually black, is renowned for the richness of its milk, which was thought to be useful against pulmonary diseases. In fact, between 1870 and 1930, it was a common practice for the breeders of Béarn to take their flocks to Paris so as to sell the milk directly to consumers.
Around 1900 there were roughly 1,500 heads of this cattle in the streets of Paris! Milking took place directly in the customers’ houses. After the war the number of heads of cattle fell drastically and the breed was threatened by competition from Alpine breeds, which are both more select and better performing. In 1993 a program was put in place to recover the breed’s numbers: in 2010 about 3,300 heads of this breed were counted along the Pyrenees Mountains.
There are a total of about a dozen strains of this breed that correspond to different places of origin. In the Béarn area, the most common strain of this goat is the so-called laurette, popular in part due to its rather large size: this strain has divided, arched horns that are thick at the base; heavy, drooping ears; and streaks of white fur around their eyes that lighten their heads which otherwise are completely black. An extremely rustic breed, this goat is perfectly adapted to mountainous areas. Accustomed to difficult and perilous ground, this breed is fundamental in the safeguarding of mountain pastures. During the period of seasonal movements, the milk is used to produce uncooked, pressed cheeses, and later in the season it is used in cheeses like Crottin, made with lactic curd. The meat of this breed’s kids is delicious, but unfortunately there is not a very big market for it, as it is eaten primarily during the period around Easter.
Image: © Association La Chèvre de race pyrénéenne
Back to the archive >Aux alentours de 1900, près de 1 500 chèvres défilaient ainsi dans les rues de la capitale française ! La traite avait lieu directement au domicile des clients.
Après la guerre, le cheptel a radicalement diminué et la chèvre des Pyrénées s’est trouvée menacée par la concurrence des races alpines, à la fois plus sélectives et plus performantes. En 1993, un programme de protection a été lancé, et, en 2010, on dénombrait près de 3 300 caprins de cette race dans les Pyrénées.
La chèvre des Pyrénées compte au total une douzaine d’espèces qui correspondent au lieu d’origine. Dans le Béarn, la Laurette, l’espèce la plus commune, est populaire en raison notamment de sa taille plutôt grande. Elle présente des cornes divisées, recourbées vers l’arrière et épaisses à la base ; des oreilles lourdes et tombantes ; et des virgules de fourrure blanche autour des yeux qui éclaircissent sa tête qui serait sinon complètement noire. Espèce extrêmement rustique, cette chèvre est parfaitement adaptée aux zones montagneuses. Habituée aux terrains escarpés et dangereux, elle est fondamentale dans la protection des espaces pastoraux de montagne. Au cours de la transhumance, le lait sert à fabriquer des fromages pressés à pâte crue, et, plus tard dans la saison, il est utilisé pour fabriquer des fromages lactiques tels que le crottin. La viande de son chevreau est délicieuse, mais son marché reste malheureusement limité dans la mesure où elle est essentiellement consommée à la période de Pâques.
Foto: © Association La Chèvre de race pyrénéenne
