Auxois Horse

Origin: France – Burgundy.

Height: 15.2-16hh.

Color: Red roan or bay.

Character: Quiet, kind, gentle, and willing.

Physique: Strong heavy draught horse, similar to Trait du Nord andArdennais. Large head with longish ears and a general air of kindliness; short, strong neck; massive front; powerful body with a deep girth; strong hindquarters with sloping croup and low-set tail. Strong legs with comparatively little feathers for a horse of its type. Hardy and enduring.
The Auxois is the old heavy horse of north-eastern Burgundy. It has existed since at least the Middle Ages and seems originally to have been a somewhat smaller and lighter breed. It was used to pull coaches and was also valued as a draught horse.

More modern methods of farming and the quantity of heavy work triggered by the Industrial Revolution called for a stronger, heavier type of horse, and 19th-century breeders of the Auxois began to cross their mares to Percheron and Boulonnais stallions. Subsequently, the Ardennais became the preferred cross and today’s Auxois carries much Ardennais blood. The breed is now carefully controlled for type and color.

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