Although the majority of Indian cattle at present are non-descript, there are 26 well-defined breeds of cattle and six breeds of buffaloes found all across the country. These can be broadly classified into milch, draught and dual-purpose breeds. The cows of milch breeds are high milk yielders therefore they are also called dairy breeds. But, their bullocks are of a moderate type or of poor quality.
The animals of this group are generally heavily inbuilt, with pendulous dewlap and sheath. They have lateral and often curled horns. Outstanding examples of such breeds are Gir, Sindhi, Sahiwal & Deoni. In the United States, these breeds have become good beef breeds.
In the case of dual-purpose breeds, the cows are fairly good milkers and bullocks are good for draught purposes. Hariana, Ongole, Tharparkar, Kankrej, etc. are dual-purpose breeds of cattle. Similarly, the cows of draught breeds are poor milkers but the bullocks are excellent draught animals. Examples are Nagori, Malvi, Kllerigarh, Amritmahal, Khillari, Pan war, Siri, Kenwaria, etc. The important Indian Milch breeds are described here.
Top 5 Milk Producing Cattle Breeds in India
Milch breeds or Dairy Breeds in India;
1. Sahiwal
Originating from Montgomery district, now in Pakistan, this breed is found in various parts of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, and Uttar Pradesh. This is considered to be the best -Zebu milch breed.
The animal is generally dull in colour. Some may be pale red. dark brown or even blackish and others may have spots or large white areas. They have a symmetrical body, broad head, long deep lethargic and heavy constitution. The skin is fine and horns stumpy. Because of the heavy dewlap, the animal is also known as 'Lola'. The average weight of its males is about 522 kg and that of females is 340 kg.
2. Red Sindhi
Even though the natural habitat of this breed is around Karachi and Sind in Pakistan, they can be seen in many parts of India. They are compact animals with a dark red colour. Bull is darker, with well proportioned head. short thick horns and a broad face.
They have moderate drooping ears, heavy hump and pendulous dewlap and sheath. The udder is big and often pendulous. Teats are generally large. The average lactation yield of this breed is about 2000 kg. Bulls are lethargic and slow workers. The average weight of males is 450 kg and female 295 kg.
3. Gir
Gir forest in Kathiawar district of Gujarat is the place of origin of this breed. Massive forehead and long pendulous curled leaf-like ears are its peculiarities. Colour is seldom entire. All stages of mottling in various shades of red to black can be seen. They have well-shaped udder with large teats. They produce on an average 2000 kg milk per lactation. Males are slow but heavy worker. The average weight of males is 544 kg and female 386 kg.
4. Tharparkar
The home of this breed is the Tharparkar district of Hyderabad, India, and cattle are now distributed up to the south-east in Sind, Amarkot, Naukot, Dhoro Naro, and Chor. The area extends up to the Cutch deserts of West India, Marwar in the east, and the Palampur area of North Bombay. The animals are medium-sized, deep built, short. straight and strong limbs. strong well-proportioned frame, broad poll, and forehead are slightly convex with medium-sized horns. Moderately developed dewlaps with straight and moderately long back.
The bull is fine with black switch, white or light grey line long the spine in young animals. Males show virility. are is moderately developed with 3-4 inches teats. Cows are good yielders. Bulls are good for carting and ploughing. Average milk yield under village condition is 1474 kg.
5. Rathi
Rathi is another important milch breed of cattle, which is found in the arid regions of Rajasthan. Rathi cattle are believed to have evolved from the amalgamation of Red Sindhi, Sahiwal, Dhanni and Tharparkar breeds with a prevalence of Sahiwal blood. The cows are efficient & good milkers. On average they produce 1560 kilograms of milk. The lactation milk yield ranges from 1062 - 2810 Kg.
