Sempione goat

Breeding male Capra Sempione goat, with characteristic imposing horns (Adrian Bär)

Origin and development

The Sempione goat – known in the Valais dialect as “Simplerziege”(Simplon goat) – belongs to the group of Valais goats. It was originally found throughout the Simplon area, both on the Swiss side and on the Italian side, in the northernmost parts of the Piemonte region. This breed was also overlooked in the 1938 review of Swiss goat breeds. In the course of the Copperneck goat rescue project, a small number of Sempione goats were identified in the Valais and other regions of Switzerland and in Southern Germany. From 2013, all known individuals in Switzerland and in Germany were recorded with equal status in the herdbook of Valais goats. Since 2020, the herdbook has been maintained by the newly established breeding association for Sempione, Copperneck and Grüenochte goats.

Description

As is typical of Valais goats, the Sempione has a slender build, long hair and imposing horns (especially the billies). With its long, snow-white coat, it has a striking, attractive appearance.

Fortunately, a small number of Sempione goats survived amid Blackneck herds (Robert Schmid)

Breeding objectives

h Rescuing a critically endangered coat colour variant h Coat hair not too long (at least 20 cm ground clearance) h Good fattening capacity h Large, robust animals

References

ProSpecieRara (www.prospecierara.ch) Züchterverein der Capra Sempione, Kupferhalsziege und Grüenochte Geiss (www.zckg.ch)