Salers Cattle, Bull (Farm Life by Papo)

Before we begin the review, I would like to thank Happy Hen Toys for supplying this figure for review. Happy Hen Toys is a U.S. distributor of animal figurines and a member and supporter of the Animal Toy Blog and Forum. Of particular note is that they’re one of the few U.S. distributors that stocks CollectA figurines. Check out their wares and support them today!

Today we’re looking at the new for 2023 Papo Salers (pronounced say-lair) bull. Salers cattle originate in south-central France and are named after the medieval town of Salers, located in the Auvergne region. The Salers was historically a triple-purpose breed, raised for dairy, beef, and draft, but is mostly used for beef these day. Its milk is still used for cheese production though, including Cantal, Bleu d’Auvergne, and Salers cheeses.

So far, Papo is the only modern company to produce this breed in toy-form, not surprising since Papo is a French company. Previously they made a Salers cow that was in production between 2005-2014 and then re-released in 2019. A calf was released alongside this bull in 2023 and there’s also a vintage figure by Starlux.

The Papo Salers bull measures about 5.25” (13.3 cm) long and stands 3” (7.62 cm) tall at the shoulder. The actual Salers cattle are a medium size breed. Cows weigh about 1,500 lbs. (680 kg) and stand 4.6’ (140 cm) at the shoulder while bulls average about 2,500 lbs. (1,133 kg) and stand 5.25’ (160 cm) at the shoulder. Using shoulder height, we get a scale of 1/21 for the figure. Most of the cattle in my Schleich dominated collection fall within the 1/16-1/18 scale range so I would have preferred it a touch larger.

The Papo Salers bull is presented in a static pose with the head very gently looking rightward. The figure has an imposing, big, brawny appearance. The neck and crest are appropriately thick, and it has a prominent dewlap and brisket running down the neck and chest. The head is V-shaped, as it should be in this breed.

The horns curve sharply upwards, perhaps too much, and it would have been nice if they were more lyre shaped, as they often are in this breed. The cow figure of the breed reflects the actual horn shape better than this bull. Salers cattle typically have horns, but some are naturally polled (hornless). The hips are noticeable under the skin and in cattle the protruding hip bones in the front are also known as the hook bones. The figure has a pitted texture overall, giving the illusion of a short coat of hair.

Salers cattle are typically dark cherry red or mahogany in color although black Salers exist in North America. This figure is painted dark red although the pictures make it appear more brown and the line between brown and red on this toy is fine one. The switch on the end of the tail is white, as it should be, and the hooves are gray. The nose is pink, and the eyes are black with pink skin painted around them. The horns are tan colored with dark tips. A bit of white is painted on the tip of the sheath.

The paint application is decent overall but there is some bleeding of the paint where the horns touch the ears and where the tail switch connects to the leg. I don’t care for the eyes either. It almost looks as if eyes weren’t even sculpted on the figure, just painted on where they ought to be.

The Papo Salers bull is a unique and welcome addition to my growing herd of cattle figures. If you’re a cattle figure aficionado, it is not one to be missed and you have the option of having a family group of them too thanks to the calf and rereleased cow figure. It seems unlikely that any other company will tackle this obscure breed so track down one of or all the Papo Salers figures while you can. The Papo Salers bull can be purchased at Happy Hen Toys, here. If you would like to get a closer look at the Salers cow I don’t think you’ll have to wait long!