Cute, resilient and rare: old livestock breeds

Germany's Greens party has promised, ahead of this year's parliamentary elections, to put an end to factory farming. In the modern age, traditional livestock is slowly being replaced by new, more productive animals. The bronze turkey hen pictured here is one of just 1,000 animals currently being phased out. Many of them are now endangered.

Old breeds are often tougher and less prone to illness than new breeds. Breeder organizations therefore take a stand for the preservation of endangered livestock breeds. That's especially necessary when it comes to the colourful Bentheim black pied pig, as there are only a few hundred left worldwide. The meat is known to be high in fat but very tasty.

Grassy highlands and moors are the best pasture grounds for the white horned heath sheep, on the left, above. The sheep is known to be extremely endangered. There are, however, enough four-horned Jacobs sheep, on the right. Their dark wool is highly valuable.

The weather-resistant highland cattle from the Scottish highlands also thrive outside the British Isles. Currently there are no concerns about their population numbers: there are many animals and breeders across the EU. Germany is the largest breeding country on the European mainland.

It is one of the largest donkeys in the world. The Poitou donkey comes originally from France. It is used to breed mules, carry heavy loads and to work in the fields. There are only 300 Poitou donkeys remaining worldwide. A pure Poitou is almost impossible to find because it has been crossbred many times.

The Chinese mask pig is the oldest hog breed in the world and presumably originated directly from the wild hog. It is common in China but only rarely appears in Europe. It has an almost hairless body and a wrinkled snout. The pig is especially resistent to parasites.

They are calm, eager to learn and even-tempered, and yet there are less than 100 of them left worldwide. A single herd in the German state of North-Rhine-Westphalia saves the Dülmener horses from extinction. The breed originally emerged by accident when escaped domestic horses mated with wild horses.

The Thuringian goat was especially bred for the rough conditions of the Thuringian Forest. The animals don't mind a tough winter and a lot of rain. They are mainly kept for purposes of landscape maintenance and for their milk. There are over a thousand animals left, but the population is being closely observed.

When it comes to poultry, there are many high performance breeds built for prolific egg-laying already. But, there's no new type of chicken that can produce offspring which look as quirky as this silky fowl.