The Poney du Logone is a
breed of small horse or
pony from the area of the
Logone River in
Chad and
Cameroon, in west central Africa.[2] It is particularly associated with the Musey or
Moussey people [
fr] of that region, and may also be known as the Poney Musey or Poney Mousseye.[3]
History
There are many descriptions of the small horses of the Marba-Musey people of the
flood-plain of the middle reaches of the
Logone River in south-western Chad and northern Cameroon; among them are those of
Dixon Denham in 1826 and
Gustav Nachtigal in 1880.[3]: 233 Horse-breeding in the area remained relatively unchanged until the 1980s; in 1985 the horse population there was estimated at 6000–6500 head.[3]: 233
In 2007 the Poney du Logone population in Chad was listed as "not at risk" by the
FAO.[4]: 17 In Cameroon the breed is considered a relic of the past, and to be at risk of extinction.[5]: 49
Characteristics
The head of the Poney du Logone is not heavy, as is sometimes reported, but is well proportioned, with a slightly convex profile and wide nostrils. The principal
coat colour is
bay, followed by
bay roan,
chestnut and
chestnut roan.[3]: 234
The Poney du Logone is one of two horse breeds reported to show tolerance of, or resistance to,
tsetse-borne
trypanosomosis, or "sleeping sickness". The other horse breed reported to be tolerant or resistant is the
Bandiagara of
Mali and
Niger.[6]: 93
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abBreed data sheet: Poney du Logone/Chad. Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed March 2016.
^
abcdeChristian Seignobos (1995).
Les poneys du Logone à l'Adamawa, du XVIIème siècle à nos jours (in French); in: Gigi Pezzoli (editor) (1995). Cavalieri dell'Africa: storia, iconografia, simbolismo = Cavaliers d'Afrique: histoire, iconographie, symbolisme = Horsemen of Africa: history, iconography, symbolism: atti del Ciclo di incontri organizzato dal Centro studi archeologia africana di Milano, febbraio-giugno 1994. Milano: Centro Studi Archeologia Africana. p. 233-253.
Christian Seignobos (1987). Le poney du Logone et les derniers peuples cavaliers: essai d'approche historique (in French). Maisons-Alfort: Institut d'élevage et de médecine vétérinaire des pays tropicaux, Dép. du Centre de coopération internationale et recherche agronomique pour le développement.
ISBN9782859851422.