Tuesday, November 3, 2009

DISTRIBUTION AND NUMBER

DISTRIBUTION AND NUMBER Good breeds of cattle are mostly confined to comparatively dry areas such as Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. Pastures in these areas may qualitatively be enough, but they are often scarce. The uncertainty of rainfall makes it obligatory on the part of the owners to grow crops, the residue of which provides a good supply of fodder for cattle. In humid climate, a very poor type of cattle is found.

Buffaloes thrive best in the areas of moderate rainfall as they require plenty of water for their daily bath. They live on coarser grass and even then are heavy yielders of milk.
CATTLE BREEDS India possesses 27 acknowledged indigenous breeds of cattle and seven breeds of buffaloes. These well-defined breeds are found in the dry parts of the country. Other types of breed are non-descript and do not belong to any defined breed. The Indian breeds of cattle are categorised - into the following types.

Milch Breeds Females yield a large quantity of milk, while the bullocks are not of high quality, e.g., Gir, Red Sindhi, Sahiwal, Tharparkar and Deoni.

Gir This is a native of Gujarat, but alsb found -- in Maharashtra and adjacent Rajasthan. Gir cows are good milkers. The milk yield ranges from 1,200 to 1,800 kg. The age at first calving varies from 45 to 54 months al}d the intercalving period from 515 to 600 days.

Red Sindhi The home tract of this breed is Karachi and Hyderabad districts of Pakistan. However, a number of herds of this breed are found in certain cattle breeding institutions in the country. Red Sindhis are small in size and are very good milkers. Milk production ranges from 1,250 to 1,800 kg. Age at first calving is 39 to 50 months and the calving interval is of 425 to 540 days.

Sahiwal This is a native of Pakistan. The breeding tract of this breed was Montgomery district which is now named as Sahiwal district. By far it is the best breed of the subcontinent. The animals are usually long and fleshy and with heavier builds. The milk yield ranges from 1,400 to 2,500 kg. The age of first calving ranges from 37 to 48 months and the calving interval is from 430 to 580 days.

Deoni This is an admixture of Gir, Dangi and local animals. Its native tract is in western Andhra Pradesh. They have high milk productivity.

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