| dc.description.abstract | In France, Normandy (referring to the low part: Basse-Normandie) is recognized
worldwide as a breeding ground for racing horses and sport horses in general. Basse Normandie is by far the leading French region for equine numbers with nearly 80,000
equines (numbers on and off farms), i.e., 13% of the national equine population [1]. More
specifically, each territory has its own specificity: the Calvados (city of Deauville famous
for its annual yearling auction: Arquana) leads in race horses, the English Channel is the
stronghold of the French breed: Selle Français for show jumping horses but also the
Normand Cob for draft horses, and the Orne is the land of trotters but also Percheron. As
of 2009, there were 7,722 farms that reported breeding activity of Selle Français, although
the vast majority (around 77%) were very small operations with only one mare [2]. | en_US |
