Barraquand horse

The Barraquand horse is a French mountain horse breed. It is the result of an ancient selection process in the Vercors Massif, and it may have originated from a small herd of animals selected by religious communities, notably those established in the Léoncel abbey. It takes its name from the Barraquand family, who developed their breeding from the late 19th century to the 1950s, thanks to the practice of transhumance. Considered lost after the bankruptcy of the original Barraquand breeding operation and the sale of part of their land in 1963, the breed has been reconstituted since the 1990s, thanks to the initiative of several breeders and local institutions, in particular the Barraquand family, the Vercors Regional Natural Park and the Annecy National Stud.

The selection carried out by Jules Barraquand has resulted in a remarkable homogeneity in the size and type of these horses, modest in size, bay in color and renowned for their calm character and ability to withstand the harsh mountain climate. Once used for transport and farm work, Vercors de Barraquand horse is now mainly used for equestrian tourism in its native region. Critically endangered, the breed numbered around 215 in 2015. It has been officially recognized by the French Ministry of Agriculture since 2017.

Etymology and terminology
The official name retained on 18 July 2017 by the French Ministry of Agriculture to designate this horse breed is Cheval du Vercors de Barraquand, this name also being the one retained by the official database of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, DAD-IS.

Customary use of this horse in the South of France has imposed the name of the Barraquand family to designate the breed. As a result, the names cheval du Vercors and Cheval (de) Barraquand can be used interchangeably. CAB International's reference work (6th edition, 2020) refers to the breed as 'Vercors', listing 'Barraquand' as a synonym; however, the Delachaux Guide does the opposite. Furthermore, La France agricole (ed. 2016) refers to the breed under its official name of Cheval du Vercors de Barraquand.

History
Various unverifiable hypotheses circulate about the origin of these horses, one of them presenting it as a descendant of the Tarpan. Veterinary student Jean-Xavier Dussert's thesis on the Barraquand family's transhumance breeding, defended in 1946 and published the following year, is the only academic source on this breed.

Origins
The history of the Vercors Massif is deeply marked by the settlement of religious communities practicing livestock breeding and agriculture, from the Middle Ages onwards; these communities probably selected the ancestors of today's local horse breed. In 1760, Dom Périer, prior to the Abbey of Léoncel, to whom it is owed the first written trace mentioning this breed, suggested the creation of a stud farm on the Ambel plateau, but was refused because of his controversial past deforestation activities. According to Barraquand's brochure for the Vercors horse association, he wrote that "since time immemorial, the Vercors mountains had been home to a breed of stocky, hardy horses perfectly adapted to the rugged mountain terrain and harsh climate".

At the time, horses seemed to be in short supply in this region. They were used for transport, to work in the fields and to provide meat.

Although the number of horses in Treschenu-Creyers rose sharply between 1836 and 1921 (with a reduction in the number of donkeys and mules), by the end of the 19th century, small mountain horses were beginning to disappear in the face of competition from the heavy draft breeds used in the plains, in parallel with a decline in farming motivated by the rigors of the climate and a craze for cattle breeding, which was more remunerative.

Barraquand family influence
The breed really took off at the end of the 19th century. The development of the breed gained further impetus in the first half of the 20th century, under the impetus of the Barraquand family, breeders from the Vercors region (who owned land in what is now the commune of Omblèze). Jules Barraquand, in particular, is considered the breed's founder. In 1894, as a fourteen-year-old tenant farmer, he created his own herd from a stallion and six local mares. Severe selection led to the homogenization of the horses' type. In the winter of 1908, Jules Barraquand began transhumance, with hundreds of horses crossing the south of France along the Rhone valley, leaving the summer pastures to spend the winter in the Crau.

Thanks to his excellent management, by 1914 his herd included 200 brood mares, eight stallions approved by the National stud farms, and the breed took his name. World War I brought a slowdown. Breeding then picked up again, with farmers and market gardeners in the Vercors and Southern regions adopting this economical horse for their small-scale farm work; so-called 'Barraquand horses' spread to farms in villages along the transhumance route. This period of agricultural prosperity enabled the Barraquand family to acquire nearly 800 hectares of land near Arles and in the Vercors, at Ambel. The transhumance from the Font d'Urle and Ambel lands to the plains of the Southern regions, involving the passage of dozens of bais horses along the Rhone valley, was a natural way of canvassing potential buyers and users of these horses, while leaving its mark on the memory of the local inhabitants. These horses play an important role in the local economy.

Decline
World War II took its toll on Barraquand breeding, although the horses' transhumance attracted the attention of journalist Merry Bromberger, who devoted an article to them in that month's issue of Voici la France in July 1941. Fond d'Urle and Ambel were occupied by people who had refused compulsory labor, and the farm buildings were set on fire by the Germans. With the death of Jules Barraquand, his son Frédéric took over the family business with difficulty, his farm in Ambel having been destroyed, and the horses requisitioned and dispersed by the Germans.

This population of 150 horses attracted the attention veterinary student Jean-Xavier Dussert, who, after seeing a report on their transhumance, devoted his thesis to them, defended in 1946, and suggested the development of a genuine "alpine" breed.

In the 1950s, the horse trade declined with the mechanization of agriculture. The last transhumance took place in 1954. The Barraquand family's breeding operation went into deficit, and sales collapsed in the late 1950s. Frédéric Barraquand sold his land and finally disbanded his farm in 1963. With no traceability of the horses, the breed was considered extinct.

Safeguarding
At the end of the 20th century this horse was once again attracting attention, thanks to the initiatives of enthusiasts such as Jean-Louis Barraquand, grandson of Jules Barraquand. Starting with three mares and a stallion, he began (from 1988 or 1994 ) to rebuild the herd on his family farm in Arles, and revive transhumance. These breeders were joined by the Vercors equestrian farms, and then by the Vercors Regional Natural Park, which, via the Annecy National Stud, wanted to revive Barraquand horse alongside the rescue of Villard-de-Lans cattle. In 1997, 51 horses (including 3 stallions, 27 broodmares and 21 foals) were identified as conforming to the breed type.

A safeguarding program was launched in 1995, using the horses of the Barraquand family in the Crau region as the foundation stock. An association under the French law of 1901 dedicated to safeguarding the Barraquand horse breed, initially made up of around ten people, was set up in February of the same year, in collaboration with the Association pour la promotion des agriculteurs du parc du Vercors (Association for the promotion of farmers in the Vercors Park). The first foals in this Park-funded breeding program were born in 1996. Another association, the Association française des éleveurs du cheval Barraquand (French association of Barraquand horse breeders), was created in 2001 (according to the official website ) or 2006 (according to documents registered with the prefecture ) in Arles, due to differences of opinion between breeders involved in the revival of this horse. It was dissolved in 2015.

The breeders' objective is to obtain recognition of the breed by the National stud farms (now the Institut français du cheval et de l'équitation, IFCE by its acronym in French), a prerequisite for its continued existence. The relaxation of the specifications in 2014, followed by the merger of the two associations of the Vercors horse and the Barraquand horse into a single one: Association nationale du cheval du Vercors de Barraquand, enabled this official recognition. The Barraquand horse was recognized by decree of the French Ministry of Agriculture on 18 July 2017, as a local breed.

André Barbara, national delegate for territorial horse breeds at IFCE, explains that he worked on defining the breed standard by comparing horses from the Vercors region with those from the Crau, and noting their phenotypic proximity. The studbook is established with data on six generations of horses, and between 250 and 300 animals listed, officially in 2017. The breed was represented at the Bleu du Vercors festival in Sassenage in August 2015, then for the first time at the Paris International Agricultural Show in February 2018, by the 8-year-old stallion Athos and the mare Vicky. In July 2019, it was authorized to take part in the Route Eiffel, an urban equestrian ride to Paris, open to horse breeds from French territory.

Description
The breed standard was officially validated by a breeding commission on 10 December 2015. The Barraquand horse is very close to the Auvergne horse (due to exchanges of breeding stock in the past), to the point that some specialists would like to consider it a type of the latter breed. It is also close to the Mérens and the Castillonnais horse.

Height and weight
According to breeders, the ideal height is 1.45–1.55 m, with an average height of 1.50 m, and a weight of 400 to 500 kg. The official FAO database, DAD-IS, indicates an average height of 1.50 m for a median weight of 500 kg. Sources from the Barraquand family's time indicate a slightly higher height and weight.

Morphology
The general impression is of a solid, well-built horse, but not heavy, whose polymorphous type varies from saddle horse to light draft horse. Despite this variability of type, the horses present a remarkable phenotypic homogeneity.

The head, expressive and proportionate, is quite small, with a broad forehead, a rectilinear bridge of the nose and an expressive fawn-colored "soft, made-up eye". The nostrils are supple and broad; the head is topped by small ears, ideally crescent-shaped, and well furnished with hair on the inside.

The head set is light, the neck muscular and "correctly oriented" (no stag neck). According to breed association president Sylvain Piltant, these abundant, long, wavy manes and tails help the animals withstand the elements better, and avoid crevices in the snow. Double manes are desirable. Tissues should be thin and silky.

The withers are slightly protruding. The chest is deep and open, the shoulders long, sloping and muscular; the back and loins are short, broad and powerful, well supported. The topline is reputed to be of good quality, with a very strong loinset. The flanks are full and deep. The rump is bouncy, powerful, long and wide, muscular, double, and "lecterned", i.e. slightly sloping, with a high set tail. Legs are well jointed, lean and muscular, solid, with short canons and feathered. The hooves are fairly small and very solid.

Coat
Only a very distinctive dark coat in all shades of bay is permitted. The presence of barnacles or any other white markings on the limbs is eliminatory. The Barraquand horse may have a few small markings on the head, which must not extend beyond the lower eye line. The tip of the nose should be gray or beige, with a fox nose (beige discoloration) accepted.

Breeder Marion Forestier justifies the search for horses without white markings by their resistance to "sunburn on bare highlands". Black markings on limbs are highly desirable, with brindle (marbled-looking) limbs appreciated, as is a mix of black and fawn manes. The hooves have black horns.

Temperament and welfare
Reputed to be strong and docile, Barraquand horses are generally raised extensively, in a transhumant system (alternating between wintering quarters and summering) in the open air all year round, giving foals the opportunity to exercise on uneven ground and develop sure-footedness. Sociable, hardy and highly resistant, particularly in terms of feeding, they are well adapted to the mountain climate of their region. Historically, foals born in the wild were lassoed and easily trained, thanks to their naturally sociable character. Gaits are supple and energetic.

Selection
The breed is managed by the Association nationale du cheval du Vercors de Barraquand, chaired by Sylvain Piltant, who submitted the application for recognition to the French Ministry of Agriculture. The aim of the selection process is to preserve the breed's hardiness, while striving for a certain elegance of form and a pleasant character. To this end, herd life is recommended to guarantee the horses' balance and sociability.

In 2019 horses were to be entered in the breed's studbook on an initial basis, based on compliance with the standard. The main selection constraint is consanguinity management.

Usage
Originally used for ploughing, transporting and other agricultural and forestry work, Barraquand horses are becoming more like a saddle horse, as a mount for leisure activities and trail riding. It is a versatile horse: like all of Europe's "dual-purpose" mountain horses, it can work as a riding horse, horse-drawn vehicle or packhorse.

Its breeders promote it for trail riding in its cradle, the Vercors mountains, where it can meet the demands of the equestrian tourism sector and has the advantage of a hoof adapted to the terrain. The usage of a local horse is a commercial, safety and identity-related tourist attraction.

This horse is also suitable for combined driving, TREC (Techniques de Randonnée Équestre de Compétition by its extension in French) and skijoring, which requires horses that are not afraid of the cold. According to Cheval Magazine, this horse is a good introduction to sport riding, enabling riders to learn show jumping and eventing up to Club level (the lowest level of competition in the French system).

Barraquand horse can be extensively bred to complement cattle or sheep, and become a tool for managing mountain areas: it has the advantage of being lighter than draft horses, and therefore less damaging to the soil through trampling. The breed association also recommends them for skidding timber. The pulling of taxi-sleds in ski resorts in winter is mentioned as a possible outlet.

In 2012, most of the horses born in the breeding program were destined for breeding themselves, or were acquired by riding halls, with driving remaining underdeveloped.

Breeding distribution
DAD-IS classifies Barraquand horses as one of France's native local horse breeds, critically endangered and subject to on-site protection measures (2020). In 2023, it was considered by the French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and the Environment (INRAE by its acronym in French) as a French horse breed threatened with extinction.

One of the rarest and most confidential of French horse breeds, it has the distinction of having two cradles, the Vercors plateau and the Crau plain, due to the practice of transhumance between these two biotopes. The Vercors Massif region is located in the French departments of Drôme and Isère, where the horse is considered a regional heritage, being the only horse breed unique to the former French region of Rhone-Alpes. The national breed competition is held every year in Corrençon-en-Vercors. In addition to the French national association of breed, the Vercors Regional Natural Park and the Association pour la Promotion des Agriculteurs du Parc (Association for the Promotion of Farmers in the Park) are taking action to preserve and promote this local breed.

In 2010, according to an article by journalist Marion Frison for Isère magazine, there were just over a hundred Barraquand horses and around ten breeders breeding them. In 2014, the Guide Delachaux estimated this herd at 150 horses, also for a dozen breeders. DAD-IS data indicate a herd of 215 horses in 2015; those collected by Amélie Tsaag Valren from the breed association at the end of 2015 give around 200 subjects, underlining the difficulty of obtaining reliable statistics before official recognition of the breed.

All births of horses belonging to the breed have been registered since 1996, i.e. 323 births between 1996 and 2017. In 2019, according to Ariane Fornia's article, around twenty foals eligible for inclusion in the Barraquand horse studbook were born.

In culture
The breed was featured on the French TV channel France 3 on 30 January 2019, in the documentary program Des racines et des ailes, as part of the episode Passion patrimoine : Sur les sentiers du Dauphiné.

Writer and poet Ahmed Kalouaz cited Barraquand horse in his novel Sur le bout de la langue, published in August 2019.