Aure et Saint-Girons

Aure et Saint-Girons cattle, often called Casta, are a rare French mountain breed from the central Pyrenees, especially the Aure valley and the Saint-Girons area. They are chestnut to dark brown cattle with sturdy legs, a deep body, and long horns that reflect their past as animals for work, milk, and meat in difficult terrain. The breed's name is tied to two historic local populations that are now generally managed together within conservation-minded breeding.

Small herds are kept for suckler beef, landscape grazing, and the preservation of Pyrenean cattle genetics rather than for high-volume commercial production. Cows need the same basics as other cattle, but their value is greatest when they can use rough pasture and maintain soundness in steep, changeable country. Because numbers are limited, mating plans often involve breed associations, semen banks, or coordinated exchanges to avoid narrowing the gene pool while keeping the cattle useful on farms.

Colors: Belted, Black, Black and White, Blaze Faced, Blue Roan, Brindle, Brockle Faced, Brown, Brown and White, Dun, Gray, Grey, Highbelt, Highpark, Lineback, Mottled, Pied, Red, Red and White, Red Roan, Riggit, Roan, Silver, Solid Black, Solid Red, Solid White, Speckled, Spotted, White, White Faced, Yellow