The Nivernais is an endangered
breed
A breed is a specific group of domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist several slig ...
of heavy
draught horse from the
Nièvre
Nièvre () is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region, central-east France. Named after the river Nièvre, it had a population of 204,452 in 2019.[Percheron
The Percheron is a breed of draft horse that originated in the Huisne river valley in western France, part of the former Perche province from which the breed takes its name. Usually gray or black in color, Percherons are well muscled, and k ...]
stallions with local
Cheval du Morvan mares. A stud book was opened in 1880, and from that time the breed largely supplanted the Cheval du Morvan. The population declined from the 1950s following the mechanisation of agriculture, and in 1966 the stud-book was merged with that of the Percheron. Since the 1980s various efforts have been made to preserve the breed. Without official recognition in France, it is listed in
DAD-IS by the
FAO.
See also
*
Zakynthos horse
References
Horse breeds
Horse breeds originating in France
Culture of Burgundy
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