This document provides information on various cattle breeds found in India. It discusses indigenous cattle breeds classified based on their utility as milch (dairy), draught, or dual purpose breeds. Details are given on the breeding tract, phenotype, and performance of major breeds like Sahiwal, Gir, Tharparkar, Ongole, and Hariana. It also covers draught breeds like Hallikar, Amritmahal, and Khillari. Exotic dairy breeds introduced to India like Holstein Friesian, Jersey, and Brown Swiss are briefly described as well.

1. CATTLE BREEDS
Dr. A. Sarat Chandra

2. Parts of a Dairy Cow

3. BREED
Kravtchenko(1973) described breed as
a sufficiently large group of animals
developed by the efforts of man,
members of which have common
ancestry and possess similar
morphological, physiological and
economic characters that are inherited
more or less firmly

4. 4
CLASSIFICATION OF
CATTLE BREEDS
CATTLE BREEDS
Indigenous
Cattle
Exotic
Cattle
Based on
Utility
Based on
Phenotype
Milch
type
Beef
type
Dual
type

5. Based on Utility
Milch Type
Ex:
1. Red Sindhi
2. Sahiwal
3. Gir
4. Deoni
Draught Type
Ex:
1. Amritmahal
2. Alambadi
3. Hallikar
4. Kangayam
5. Khillari
6. Malvi
7. Nagore
8. Nimari
9. Ponwar
10. Siri
11. Bachaur
12. Bargur
13. Dangi
14. Kenkatha
15. Kherigarh
Dual Type
Ex:
1. Ongole
2. Hariana
3. Tharparkar
4. Kankrej
5. Rathi
6. Gaolao
7. Mewati
8. Krishnavalley
9. Nagauri

6. I Group; Lyre horned
Ex: Malvi, Tharparkar,
Kenkatha, Kherigarh,
Kankrej, Nagore
II group; Short horned
Ex: Ongole, Hariana,
Rathi, Gaolao, Mewati,
Krishnavalley, Nagauri,
Bachaur
III Group; Gir type
Ex: Red SindhiSahiwal,
Gir, Deoni
IV Group; Mysore type
Ex: Amritmahal, Alambadi,
Hallikar, Khillari,
Kangayam, Bargur
V Group; Hill type
Ex: Nimari, Ponwar,
Siri, Dangi
VI Group;
Ex: Dhanni
Based on Phenotype

7. EXOTIC CATTLE BREEDS
Milch Type
Ex:
1. HF
2. Jersey
3. Brown swiss
4.Ayrshire
5.Guernsey
Beef type
Ex:
1. Short horn
2. Sussex
3. Aberdeen angus
4. Galloway
5. Herd ford
Dual type
Ex:
1. Short horned
2. Long horned
3. Welsh black
4. Red Poll
7

8. INDIAN DAIRY CATTLE
FACTS
• Recognized Cattle breeds are
50
Generally they are called as
Zebu, Brahma and Nandi
Noble Characteristics:
High potency for draft
power
Capacity to sustain on agril.
Work
Resistant to tropical
diseases
Ability to withstand higher
temperatures
Capacity to utilize sparse
and coarse roughages

9. Milch Breeds
• Ponderous in
Build
• Pendulous
dewlap and
sheath
• Lateral and
often curved
horns

10. Sahiwal
• Breeding tract : Originally belonged to
Montgomery district of Punjab, found in
Punjab, Haryana, U.P, Delhi, Bihar and M.P.
• Synonyms :Lola, Montgomery, Teli
• Heavy Breed with a symmetrical body and
loose skin , Best Breed of Subcontinent
• Predominant body colour is reddish brown
with or without white splashes
• Resistance to tick borne diseases

11. Sahiwal
 Average Milk Yield : 2725 to 3175 Kgs in a lactation
period of 300 days, Heritability : 0.2 to 0.3
 Age at first Calving : 32 – 36 months
 Calving Interval : 15 months

12. Exported to Sri lanka, Kenya, many countries in
Latin America , Westindies
West Indies -New Breed Jamaica Hope evolved out of
Sahiwal and Jersey Cross breed

13. Red Sindhi
• Breeding Tract : Sind povince in Punjab
• One of the most distinctive cattle
breeds of India
• Typical body colour is red, with shades
varying from dark red to fawn yellow
• Medium sized, compact and well
proportioned
• Heavy hump, dewlap and sheath

14. Red Sindhi
• Horns are thick at the base and emerge
laterally and curve upward

15. Red Sindhi
• Production Performances :-
Av./day production:- 8-10Kg per day milk production
Av.Lact. yield:- 2500-2700Kg per lactation
• Heritability : 0.3 to 0.35
Av.Milk Fat%:- 5% Fat
Av. SNF%:- 9% SNF
•
Age at First calving : 39 to 50 months

16. Gir
• The Gir is one of the principal Zebu or Bos
indicus breeds in India and is used for both
dairy and beef production
• Originated form Gir forests of South
Kathiawar in Saurashtra, Gujrath.
• The Gir is distinctive in appearance, typically
having a rounded and domed forehead, long
pendulous ears and horns which sweep back
and spiral up
• Gir are generally mottled with the color
ranging from red to white

17. GIR

18. 5/4/2009 18
Parturition interval (day, avg) 440
Age at first parturition (month) 40
Age of breeding animals (M) 22
Birth weight (Kg) 21
Milk yield per lactation (kg) 2110
Lactation length (day) 308
Milk fat (%) 4.4
cattle breeds
Performance information

19. Deoni
• Breeding Tract : North western and western
parts of A.P, Mahrashtra and Karnataka
• Local names : Dongri, Wannera, Dongarpatti
• Mixture of gir and dangi
• Color black and white or red and white with
regular patches
• forehead bulging, medium sized pendulous
ears Horns sweep backward wedge shape
body, pendulous sheath
• Milk Yield: 900-1200Kg AFC: 36-42 M,
Calving Interval 400-520 days:

20. Deoni

21. Dual Purpose Breeds
• Cows are fairly good milkers
• Bullocks are good for draught
purposes
• Two types
– Short horned, white or light grey cattle
with long coffin shaped skull and face,
slightly convex in profile Ex : Ongole,
Hariana, Mewati, Dangi, Deoni
– Lyre-horned, grey cattle, deep bodied with
wide fore head.EX :Kankrej

22. Tharparkar
• Breeding tract : Semi – desert tracts of south
west sindh in pakistan.Also found in Kutch in
Gujrath and Jodhpur in Rajasthan.
• deep, strongly built, medium-sized, with
straight limbs and good feet, and with an
alert and springy carriage
• The usual color of the cattle is white or gray.
In males, the gray color may deepen,
particularly on the fore and hind quarters

24. Tharparkar
• Performance Parameters:-
• Average body weight (adult)350Kg 300-400
• Average age at maturity (months)36 , 32-36
• Average age at first calving (months)45, 41-45
• Average calving interval (days)410,400-450
• Average milk yield in Kg.(305 days)2000, 1900-2400
• Average Lactation length280, 240-377
• Average Fat % 4.88, 4.5-4.9
• Average SNF9.28, 9-9.7

25. Ongole
• Ongole is one of the best breeds of
cattle in India, highly valued for both
work and milk production
• Breeding Tract : Nellore, Ongole and
Guntur districts of A.P
• large-sized animals with loosely knit
frames, large dewlaps which are fleshy
and hang in folds extending to the
navel flap
• long bodies and short necks; limbs are
long and muscular

26. Ongole
• The forehead is broad between the
eyes and slightly prominent
• Eyes are elliptical in shape with black
eyelashes and a ring of black skin
about 1/4 to 1/2 inch wide around the
eyes (Kajal)
• Horns are short and stumpy, growing
outwards and backwards, thick at the
base and firm without cracks

27. Ongole
• The hump in the males is well-
developed and erect and filled up on
both sides and not concave
• The popular color is white. The male
has dark gray markings on the head,
neck and hump and sometimes black
points on the knees and on the
pasterns of both the fore and hind legs
. White Tail switch

28. Ongole
The famous Santa Gertrudis breed evolved in Texas, USA has the
inheritance Of Ongole breed in its development.

29. Character Min Avg Max
Parturition interval (day, avg) 500 420 720
Age at first parturition (month) 49 38 60
Age of breeding animals (avg, month) 23
Birth weight (kg) 28
Milk yield per lactation (kg) 475 688 1000
Lactation length (day) 160 233 270
Milk fat (%) 4.0
PERFORMANCE
4/9/2023 cattle breeds 16

30. Hariana
• Widely distributed throughout the
country
• Breeding Tract : Hissar, Karnal, Rohtak
and Gurgaon districts of Haryana
• Body is proportionate, moderately long
and compact in appearance.
• A prominent bony prominence at the
centre of the poll -typical characteristic

31. 5/4/2009 31
Parturition interval (day, avg 483
Age at first parturition (month) 52
Age of breeding animals (M) 23.3
Birth weight ( Kg) 21.7
Milk information
Milk yield per lactation (kg) 997
Lactation length (day) 272
Milk fat (%) 5.4
cattle breeds
Productive performance

32. Hariana

33. Kankrej
• The Kankrej is one of the heaviest of
the Indian breeds of cattle
• The breed comes from southeast of the
Desert of Kutch in western India,
particularly along the banks of the
rivers Banas and Saraswati
• Color varies from silver to gray to iron
gray or steel black

34. Kankrej

35. Kankrej
• The switch of the tail is black in color. The
forehead is broad and slightly dished in the
center
• The strong lyre-shaped horns are covered
with skin to a higher point than in other
breeds
• The Kankrej cattle are very highly prized as
fast, powerful draft cattle. They are also fair
producers of milk – 1360 Kg per lactation

36. Draft Breeds
• Cows of these breeds are poor milkers
• Bullocks are excellent draught animals
• 4 types
–Short horned : Nagori and Bachaur
–Lyre horned : Kenkatha, Malvi and
Kherigarh
–Mysore type : Hallikar, Amrithmahal,
Khillari
–Small black red or dun cattle

37. Hallikar
• One of the premier draft breeds in India
• found primarily in the southern region
of Karnataka state, in the area
surrounding Mysore
• Once trained, a team of Hallikar oxen
can pull a loaded cart over rough roads
at a rate of 40 miles per day

38. Hallikar
The typical color is dark grey
The Hallikar are the origin of the Amritmahal breed

39. Amritmahal
• One of the best known draft breed
• Home tract : Mysore, Tumkur
• The animals are small, active and famous for
their power of endurance
• The breed is suitable for fast work but are
very fierce
• The head is well-shaped, long and tapering
towards the muzzle
• The horns emerge from the top of the poll,
fairly close together in an upward and
backward direction, and terminate in sharp
points which are usually black

40. Amrithmahal

41. Khillari
• Mainly bred in southern parts of
Maharashtra and also in Sholapur and
Satara Districts
• compact and tight skinned, with clean
cut features
• The neck is rather short. The dewlap is
light with very little fold. The hump in
males is firm fleshed and of moderate
size

42. Khillari

43. Kangayam
Bred in the southern and southeastern area of the
Coimbatore district of Madras State in India
compact bodies and short, stout legs with strong
hooves
color is usually gray or white

44. BREEDS OF EXOTIC CATTLE
• To improve the milk production potential of
Indian cows some exotic breeds of catlle
have been introduced
• Cross breeding is the national policy to
achieve quick progress
• Military Dairy farms were the first to
introduce European breeds like Ayrshires,
Holstein Friesian, 60-70 years back.
• The exotic breeds presntly used are HF,
Jersey, Brown Swiss, Red dane

45. Holstein Friesian
• The Holstein cow originated in,
Netherlands, Europe specifically in the
two northern provices of North Holland
and Friesland
• Largest Dairy Breed and by far the best
dairy breed
• Holsteins are large, stylish animals with
color patterns of black and white or red
and white

46. Holstein Friesian
MY:19000 world record: Avg-3500-4000,3.5% fat .
AFC: 26-30 M. CI: 13-14 Months

47. Jersey
• One of the Oldest breed, Jersey
originated on the Island of Jersey, a
small British island in the English
Channel off the coast of France
• excellent grazers and perform well in
intensive grazing programs. They are
more tolerant of heat than the larger
breeds

49. Jersey
• Dark brown/grey with or without
markings these animals carry long
straight top lines.
• Bulls are extremely masculine
• Weight 350-500kg
• Horns inclined forwards , small at base
taper towards the tip. Dished face,small
size
• My: 4500Kg Fat: 4.5- 6%
• AFC: 26-30M, CI: 13-14

50. Brown swiss
• Oldest breed of cattle
• Origin : Switzerland, second largest milk producing
with 9000kg per annum
• Body color: shades of brown varying from lightsilver to
darkbrown. Hair inside the ear are lighter color than body. Nose
and tongue are black with light colored band around the nose
• Body weight: 700-800 Males, 500-600 kg . Late maturing breed
of milch
• AFC: 28-30M, MY 5000-5500 lts
• CI: 13.14 months

51. Red dane
• Origin: Denmark (Danish red cattle,red Danish,)
• Body colour : resembles HF except solid red color
• Bulls dark red . Weigh 1000 kg, 660kg cows
• Solid red color of this breed helped in making them
popular for cross breeding in tropical countries with red
sindhi , Sahiwal
• Cows are good milk yeilders with high fat
• MY: 2500-3000kg. 4.5% fat