They are mostly bred in Biscay, Gipuzkoa and Navarre for their milk which is used in the production of Idiazábal and Roncal cheeses. A medium to small sheep with a fairly coarse wool. The Pottoka () is an ancient but endangered breed of mountain horse. They are small horses with a large head, small ears, short neck, long back, shaggy mane and small hooves. Originally these roamed the Basque Pyrenees in a semi-feral state but today many are stabled. The Pyrenean Mountain Dog ("Pirinioetako mendiko zakurra" in Basque and known in the U.S. as the Great Pyrenees) is a large breed of dog used as a livestock guardian dog. The Alavan pinto bean is a type of common bean. Apple growing has a long history in the Basque Country, in particular for use in making Basque cider. The earliest written records on cider making and drinking go back to the 11th and 12th century, the very first being a record of Sancho III of Navarre sending an envoy to the Monastery of Leire in 1014 who mentions apples and cider-making. The other is the circa 1134 diary of the pilgrim Aymeric Picaud included in the "Codex Calixtinus" who mentions the Basques being notable for growing apples and drinking cider. The 16th century inquisitor Pierre de Lancre also refers to the Basque Country as "the land of the apple". Many varieties exist and are used for making cider. Azkue's dictionary alone, which was printed in 1905, lists more than 80 Basque varieties of apples. Depending on the desired character of the finished cider, different varieties and proportions of apple varieties are used. Some common varieties include:   A variety of mild peppers with AOC certification, grown in the Northern Basque Country in the Espelette area. Pelua cherries are an early Basque black cherry cultivar. Xapata () cherries are a variety of black cherry with a very short fruiting season, lasting only a few weeks around June. They are cultivates mainly in the area around the Lapurdian town of Itxassou. Several breeds of animals are common both in the Basque Country and other regions straddling the Pyrenees. The Pirenaica is a breed of cattle found in the Basque Country, Aragon and Catalonia.