Latxa

Latxa is a Basque dairy sheep from northern Spain, especially the Basque Country and Navarre. The name refers to the breed's coarse wool, which is secondary to its milk. Latxa sheep occur in dark-faced and blonde-faced types, with medium to small frames, long rough fleeces, and horn patterns that vary by sex and line. Their milk is closely associated with Idiazabal and Roncal cheeses.

Traditional management links farm milking with mountain grazing. Ewes may be milked during the main lactation and then moved to higher summer pasture once cheese production slows, although exact practice varies by valley and flock. Practical selection emphasizes udder shape, milk solids, mothering, and hardiness on wet, uneven ground. The wool has local and craft uses, but anyone keeping Latxa primarily for fiber will miss the breed's real center: a regional dairy sheep shaped by cheese, transhumance, and Basque flock identity.