The Cachena is a small herding breed from Portugal. It is a three-purpose breed that is bred for milk and meat production and also used for draft purposes.
Along with Protugal, these animals are also bred in Galicia, Spain. Portugal also has a similar but larger breed of cattle known as barrosia Where barrosa. Sometimes Barrosa and Cachena are considered different variants of the same breed.
Cachena cattle were bred from the indigenous brown and yellow breed of northern Portugal.
The breed was bred in the past in the Vila Real region, which is an agriculturally poor region in the far north of Portugal. The climate is hot and dry in summer and cold and humid in winter.
There is little fertile land. The Cashena cattle breed is common in the low mountain ranges of Spain’s Baixa Limia Serra do Xures Natural Park, in the border region with Portugal.
In addition, they are common in the region of the village of Orensic Olelas and in the Portuguese national park Peneda Geres. The Cachena Stud Book was founded in 1990. Learn more about the breed below.
Characteristics of Cashew Cattle
Cashena cattle are small animals, but not a dwarf breed. It is one of the smallest cattle breeds in the world. They have a slender body and large lyre-shaped horns.
They are usually light brown to yellow in color with dark brown tints all around. Their mucous membranes are not pigmented, except for the dark muzzle. The average height of bulls and cows is equal to or less than 110 cm.
But bulls are generally larger than cows. The average live weight of mature cows is about 390 kg. And adult bulls weigh an average of about 550 kg. Photos and information from Wikipedia.
Advantages
The Kachens were originally a triple-purpose race. But today they are mainly used for meat production. Their meat is of excellent quality, the cows are also good for milk production.
Special Notes
Kashen cattle are very hardy and can live on poor granite soils. In fact, it is a very hardy breed, perfectly adapted to the local environment.
In most cases, these animals are kept in the wild in open-air grazing conditions. They have a good sense of smell, which helps them search for rare herbs in the bushes.
Although the Kashena cattle breed was once a triple-purpose breed, it is now bred primarily for meat production. And it is known for its excellent quality beef.
In addition to high-quality meat production, the breed gives a small amount of milk. Their milk has a very good taste, mainly due to the wild herbs of this region, and is almost fragrant.
Cachena cows are excellent mothers and exemplary relationships with their calves. Their small size may be an adaptation to aggressive environments, as a small cow requires less energy and survives times of starvation. However, check out the full Cachena cattle breed profile in the following table.
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| Breed name | Cachena | |
| another name | everything | |
| Purpose of the breed | Milk, meat and pressure | |
| Special Notes | Rustic, strong, good quality milk, suitable for meat, perfectly adapted to local conditions, suitable for traction work. | |
| Breed size | Little | |
| Bulls | About 550kg | |
| cows | About 390kg | |
| climatic tolerance | native climate | |
| coat color | Light brown to yellow with dark brown highlights on the edges | |
| horned | Yes | |
| milk production | Not really | |
| scarcity | general | |
| Country/place of origin | Portugal |
