BASIC BREEDS OF BOS INDICUS/DESI CATTLE

The basic breeds form the basis of formation of other sub breeds of cattle.

There are four or five prototype breeds of cattle in India.

These include:

1.) Large white cattle of North:

These are represented by breeds like Tharparkar of Rajasthan, Bhagnari of Balochistan, Hariana of Haryana state etc.

Ongole is probably a large white cattle that has migrated to South.

               Bhagnari breed from Balochistan

2.)Mysore type of South:

These possess characterstic head and horns. Examples include : Hallikar and Amritmahal from Karnatka, Khillari from Maharashtra.

3.)Highly Peculiar Gir Cattle of Kathiawar and west of India:

Gir is most unique breed of India. Apart from original Gir breed, there are other sub breeds which have admixture of Gir blood like: Gaolao of Maharashtra, Deoni of Karnataka and Yamunatiri of Yamuna region ( Uttar Pradesh).

       Yamunatiri Cow, which is probably an extinct breed in India.

            Gaolao breed from Maharashtra

                Deoni breed from Karnataka

4.) Dwarf Cattle in hilly areas and forest areas: This group is represented by Vechur cow from Kerala, Punganur from Andhra Pradesh, Badri Cow from Uttarakhand, Pahari Cow from Himachal Pradesh, Paati breed from Assam.

              Punganur Cow of Andhra Pradesh

Badri Cow of hilly areas of Uttarakhand

5.)Afghan Cattle:  This group includes Dhanni breed from Punjab.

               Dhanni breed of West Punjab

Apart from basic breeds, many cattle have originated from admixture from two different breeds.

Important examples are:

1.) Sahiwal of Punjab is admixture of Afghan cattle and Gir breed.

2.)Rathi of Rajasthan is furthur admixture of Sahiwal, Tharparkar and Dhanni breeds.

3.) Nimari from Madhya Pradesh is admixture of Gir and Khillar breeds.

By crossing different Indigenous breeds with other indigenous breeds, numerous more breeds can be developed. For example: 

Brahman breed was developed by crossing Gir, Ongole and Kankrej In USA.

Identifying Desi/ Indigenous Cow

Identifying Desi or Indigenous Cattle:

The native breed of cows of Indian subcontinent are referred to as Desi Cow (Bos indicus).

These cows can be easily distinguished from other foreign breed cows by certain morphological characters.

Few Characterstics are as follow:

1.)Presence of Hump: Hallmark of Indigenous cows is presence of a prominent hump. Female counterparts have comparitively smaller humps. And few dwarf hill cattle may not have a prominent hump.

2.)Dewlap: refers to loose skin fold hanging from the neck. It helps in Thermoregulation. Its a sign of healthy and high milk yeilding cow.

3.)Loose skin under belly: is Charactrestic feature of good milching cows.

4.) Temperament or Behaviour: Desi cows are very docile ad freindly in nature. They are more active and intelligent than european cows. Moreover they have more motherly instinct towards their calves.

5.)Long Ears: This feature is more evident in North indian cattle. Some Southern breeds may have short ears but indigenous cows have capability to rotate them freely.

6.)Eyes: Their eyes secrete oily substances which repel insects. Sometimes these secretions are confused with tears.

Foreign cows have monstrous eyes while desi cows appear calm and serene with pleasant eyes ( which look like as if kajal has been applied).

7.) Tail: It almost touches the ground and desi cows can rotate it more than a semicircle or 180 degrees.

8.)Dung: Dung is semi solid and NOT liquidy like that of foreign cattle. Dung is insect repellant and possess useful bacteria.

AN IDEAL DESI COW WOULD LOOK LIKE AS FOLLOWS: