Cachena

Did You Know?

• In Spain, average figures for bodyweight and height at the withers are given for cows and bulls, while Portuguese cattle are considerably smaller.
• A plan for maintenance of domesticated animals in danger of extinction was made in Portugal.
• The Cachena cattle herdbook was founded in the year 2000.

History

Cachena cattle were bred from brown and yellow local cattle in northern Portugal and Galicia. They are light brown to yellow with dark brown nuances around the withers, with unpigmented mucosas except for the dark muzzle, and wide, long lyre-shaped horns. Originally bred in the Vila Real District, an agriculturally poor area in northern Portugal, they were later exported to Galicia. The climate is hot and dry in summer, cold and humid in winter, and the grounds are arduous and little fertile. The cattle are distributed around low mountain ranges in the Baixa Limia-Serra do Xurés natural park, the Ourensic village Olelas, and the Portuguese Peneda-Gerês National Park.

Use

The cow produces a small amount of milk of markedly good taste due to wild herbs, refined into cheese called Brandas da Cachena. Some beef may be marketed as Carne Cachena da Peneda, which has Protected Designation of Origin status. The breed is very rustic and adapted to its environment, keeping well when free ranging; their good sense of smell helps them search for rare herbs. Cows are good mothers, and their small height may be an adaptation to the hostile environment, needing less energy to survive famines.