Altitude Magazine

53 ALTITUDE the stable is just behind the door! There are 85 cows, but taken by my curiosity and taking pictures, I barely heard those few bells tinkle! You’re right on time, it’s 07h00 and they’re ready to come out! Jean-Marc is ready, the first stable is opened! Here are the blacks! Ding, di-ding, here we go! One by one they come out, no rush, quiet strength, and nonchalance, yet very impressing! Without hesitation they go to the shepherd across the yard! One by one the stables are opened, Jean- Marc has already disappeared on the slope. He is being followed; we can hear it! What a show! What a privilege to be here! The blacks are a breed of cows named Hérens! This herd gives no milk at this moment, they are being raised for the horn! The horn is the fight! This is how, day after day a hierarchy is settled between the beasts. These cows are a little bit like the racing horses of the valaisans! Here stops the comparison. We may talk about the money they cost, but nobody wins any! It’s all motivated by passion! A little pride and vainglory? Nooo, never! These cows have the propensity to fight, cross their horns and push strongly, sometimes with a little step back for a bit of drive, the impact can be rough, you can feel the ground quaking! Let me emphasize, this is more like quiet strength than real violence, injuries are rare even though it is sometimes really intense! We could compare this to sumo fighters, one pushes until the other gives up!