Breed Profile: Payoya Goat
Heritage Goats Provide Spanish Cheeses from Natural Resources while Managing the Landscape
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BREED: The Payoya goat is named for the Spanish towns of its origin and development: Villaluenga del Rosario, where the residents are known as Payoyos, and Montejaque, where the breed is known as Montejaqueña.
ORIGIN: Payoya goats are native to the Sierra de Grazalema, southern Spain, surrounding Villaluenga del Rosario and the White Towns of Andalusia. They are thought to have descended long ago from local goats crossed with those of Pyrenean type. Their rocky and mountainous home (700–1600 m above sea level) has an unusually high level of rain for Spain, allowing abundant vegetation of great ecological value among the crags of the limestone karst. The forests, with their cork oak, carob, and coniferous trees, provide a wealth of natural resources and habitats for endangered species.
History and Conservation of the Payoya Goat
Farming families have a long tradition of grazing their goats in the mountains of the Sierra de Grazalema, now a biosphere reserve. The mountains’ rich resources are complemented by grazing spring pastures and crop fields after the harvest. Originally family farms produced cheese for their own consumption and the local market. Over the years, this landrace spread to adjacent mountain ranges, particularly the Sierra de Ronda.
Despite their distinctive appearance, the goats’ definition as a breed was not officially recognized until 1997. However, their numbers were dropping in the face of agricultural modernization. Recognizing the risk of extinction, the local government and university collaborated in 1992 to define native goats’ unique and distinctive traits. In addition, breeders formed an association in 1995 for their conservation and promotion. Their efforts were rewarded with national recognition of their herd book and a conservation and improvement program in 2003. Their breeding goals aim to improve production while maintaining hardiness and environmental adaptation.
Nowadays, 80% of the milk yield goes into the artisan production of distinctive local cheeses. National approval of its native breed logo (Raza Autóctona 100% Payoya) in 2015 has furthered the promotion of Payoya goat cheese. New markets have opened up supplying restaurants and gastropubs, as well as national and international retail sales. Several brands (the most well-known being Payoyo) have won World Cheese Awards and are available in the United States.
CONSERVATION STATUS: At risk, but the population is expanding. In 2009, 334 males and 6,702 females were registered in the national census. Numbers grew to 541 males and 11,753 females within 37 herds by 2022.
Characteristics of the Payoya Goat
BIODIVERSITY: Various factors have shaped this heritage breed’s unique adaptations to the landscape, climate, and pastoral system. High rainfall and difficult terrain favored hardy goats with good climbing and foraging ability. Consequently, farmers selected goats that produced well under natural conditions. Selection for milk production has developed a dairy conformation. In addition, herders preferred diverse color patterns to help them identify their herds on the mountainside.
DESCRIPTION: Tall goats with long body and dairy conformation. The facial profile is straight to slightly convex with semi-pendulous ears. Horns sweep backward, fanning out at the tips. Females have short hair, often a small beard, and round udders with large teats pointing outward and forward. Males are distinctly larger and stockier than females, with thicker horns, coarser hair, well-developed beards, and fringes of longer hair around the legs. Either sex may have wattles. The skin is fine and pigmented throughout, including on muzzles, hooves, and udders.
COLORING: Payoya goats have very varied coats, each with a highly individual pattern. Although patterns are unique, they each fall into distinctive pattern types that have local names. The experienced eye will recognize these types as breed-specific, enabling the identification of crossbreeds. More than two-thirds of goats have tricolor coats in black, red, and white. Some individuals have solid-colored coats, normally red or black, but these are more often speckled or pied with white, or bear black or colored markings.
HEIGHT TO WITHERS: Adult does 31 in. (78 cm); bucks 35 in. (90 cm).
WEIGHT: Adult does 110–132 lb. (50–60 kg); bucks 154–198 lb. (70–90 kg).
A Multi-Purpose Breed of Many Talents
POPULAR USE: Milk and cheese are the main products, while kid meat is an exclusive sideline. All kids are raised on their dams’ milk to enhance the quality of their meat. The herders’ belief that raising kids on the dam increases the quantity of milk each doe produces has been verified by scientific research.* The cost of raising kids on the dams’ milk is compensated by the higher yield and the reduction in labor. A combination of the regional vegetation and the breed’s unique traits give a distinctive flavor and quality to the products.
In addition to production, the goats play an important environmental and cultural role in the region. Pastoral herds help to prevent forest fires by controlling underbrush. They also maintain the landscape and disperse seeds of native plants, encouraging rich and diverse vegetation.
The herds are still a main source of income for rural families, whether farmers, cheese makers, or related trades. They help to generate employment and halt population loss in rural areas, opening up new business opportunities in agritourism and artisan produce. They have high cultural worth, allowing people to continue to enjoy a valued way of life, gastronomy, and landscape. The breed’s hardiness and brush-clearing skills are perfect for sustainable farming and development projects in a region of high natural value.
PRODUCTIVITY: Does average 970 lb. (440 kg) of milk over 219 days, containing, on average, 4.25% fat and 3.53% protein. The dry mass, averaging 13.23%, yields high-quality solids for soft and hard cheeses. Does are polyestrous, so they can breed at any time of year. Fall births are the most prolific, averaging 1.6 kids per doe, so breeders plan most kiddings for fall, with the rest in winter or spring.
ADAPTABILITY: Long residence in the natural spaces of the Sierra de Grazalema has honed the herds’ unique adaptation to harsh local mountain conditions, including sudden changes in temperature and inclement weather. Not only are they able to support themselves, but they also enrich natural habitats, benefiting many species of endangered wild flora and fauna.
Sources
- Asociación de Criadores de Raza Caprina Payoya
- Ministerio de Agriculture, Pesca y Alimentación
- Real Federación Española de Asociaciones de Ganado Selecto
- Herrera, M. and Luque, M. 2007. Las razas caprinas andaluzas de protección especial: Blanca Serrana Andaluza, Negra Serrana o Castilla, Blanca Celtibérica y Payoya. In: Junta de Andalucía (Ed.). Las Razas Ganaderas de Andalucía. Vol II. Viceconsejería. Servicio de Publicaciones y Divulgación. Sevilla. 247–256.
- *Delgado-Pertíñez, M., Guzmán-Guerrero, J. L., Caravaca, F. P., Castel, J. M., Ruiz, F. A., González-Redondo, P., and Alcalde, M. J., 2009. Effect of artificial vs. natural rearing on milk yield, kid growth and cost in Payoya autochthonous dairy goats. Small Ruminant Research, 84(1–3), 108–115.
Lead photo by joserpizarro/Adobe Stock.
Originally published in the March/April 2024 issue of Goat Journal and regularly vetted for accuracy.
