Buffalo Breeds

   Indigenous Buffalo breeds

    1. Murrah
Most important breed of buffaloes whose home is Rohtak, Hisar and Sind
Haryana, Nabha and Patiala districts of Punjab and southern parts of Delhi state.
Otherwise called as Delhi, Kundi and Kali.
The colour is usually jet black with white markings on tail and face and extremit
sometimes found.
Tightly curved horn is an important character of this breed.
Most efficient milk and butter fat producers in India.
Butter fat content is 7.83%. Average lactation yield is varying from 1500 to 2500 k
per lactation.
Also used for the grading up of inferior local buffaloes.

  2. Surti  
Also known as Deccani, Gujarati, Talabda, Charator and Nadiadi.
The breeding tract of this breed is Kaira and Baroda district of Gujarat.
Coat colour varies from rusty brown to silver-grey.
The horns are sickle shaped, moderately long and flat.
The peculiarity of the breed is two white collars, one round the jaw and the other at
the brisket region
The milk yield ranges from 1000 to 1300 kgs per lactation.
The peculiarity of this breed is very high fat percentage in milk (8-12per cent).

    3. Jaffrabadi
 The breeding tract of this breed is Gir forests, Kutch and Jamnagar districts
Gujarat.
This is the heaviest Indian breed of buffalo.
The horns are heavy, inclined to droop at each side of the neck and then turning
at point (drooping horns).
The udder is well developed with funnel shaped teats.
The average milk yield is 1000 to 1200 kgs per lactation.
The bullocks are heavy and used for ploughing and carting.
These animals are mostly maintained by traditional breeders called Maldharis, w
are nomads.

  4. Bhadawari  
Home tract of this breed is Agra and Etawah district of Uttar Pradesh and Gwalior
district of Madhya Pradesh.
Medium sized buffalo.
The body is usually light or copper coloured is a peculiarity of this breed. Eye lids
are generally copper or light brown colour.
Two white lines ‘Chevron’ are present at the lower side of the neck similar to that of
Surti buffaloes.
The average milk yield is 800 to 1000 kgs per lactation.
The bullocks are good draught animal with high heat tolerance.
The fat content of milk varies from 6 to 12.5 per cent. This breed is an efficient
converter of coarse feed into butterfat and is known for its high butter fat content.

    5. Nili Ravi

originated around the river Ravi.

This breed is found in Sutlej valley in Ferozpur district of Punjab and in t
Sahiwal (Pakistan) of undivided India.
The peculiarity of the breed is the wall eyes.
Head is small, elongated, bulging at top and depressed between eyes.
Horns are very small and tightly coiled.
Bullocks are good for heavy trotting work.
The milk yield is 1500-1850 kgs per lactation.

  6. Mehsana  
 Mehsana is a dairy breed of buffalo found in Mehsana, Sabarkanda and Banaskanta
districts in Gujarat and adjoining Maharashtra state.
The breed is evolved out of crossbreeding between the Surti and the Murrah.
Body is longer than Murrah but limbs are lighter.
The horns are less curved than in Murrah and are irregular.
Bullocks are good for heavy work.
The milk yield is 1200-1500 kgs per lactation.

    7. Nagpuri

This breed is also called as Elitchpuri or Barari.

The breeding tract of this breed is Nagpur, Akola and Amrawati districts
Maharashtra.
These are black coloured animal with white patches on face, legs and tail. T
horns are long, flat and curved, bending backward on each side of the back. (Swaord shap
horns).
The bullocks can be used for heavy work.
The milk yield ranges from 700 to 1200 kgs per lactation.

  8. Toda  
This buffalo is named after an ancient tribe, Toda of Nilgiris Hills of south India and it is a semi-
wild breed.  
The predominate coat colours are fawn and ash-grey.
Thick hair coat is found all over the body.
They are gregarious in nature.
The body is long and deep and the chest is deep. The legs are short and strong.
The horns are set wide apart curving inward, outward and forward forming a characteristic crescent
shape.
The average milk yield is 500 kgs per lactation with high fat content of 8%.

The Different Types of Water Buffalo Breeds

EDITOR OCTOBER 4, 2013 0
Water buffaloes are very famous even nowadays and they also serve for good pets because of the fact
that they are a good source of milk, hides, fuel, horn and draft power available in various parts of Asia.
They comprise a very integral part of rural living in various parts of the world especially Asia. The best
water buffalo breeds that are known to people are described here.
Swamp buffalo
The swamp water buffalo is mainly found in Southeast Asia and is used as a domestic as well as a
draught animal. This breed of water buffaloes is mainly used for the cultivation of rice and its general
habitat is marshland. They strive in cool weather conditions and are fitted as pets because of their ability
to work. Their eating habits include grass, wood bark, leaves and stems.

River buffalo
The river buffalo is also a common breed of water buffaloes found in India, Hungary, Pakistan, Turkey
and Egypt. A river buffalo is very large in size and it also produces milk to a large extent and this is the
reason why it can be kept as a pet. These types of buffaloes can thrive in moderate weather conditions
and they mostly like to stay in rivers and clean waters. This kind of buffalo usually strives on stem and
leaves.

Carabao
The carabao is one breed of water buffaloes that is found in Guam and Philippines. Carabaos are wide,
low and heavily built to serve as draught animals and are available in colors of slate gray and light grey.
They can survive in hot climate as they have speckled skin and dark mouth and hoofs. Their eating habit
comprises of dry hay and wheat germ.

Murrah buffalo
This is one of the widest known buffalo breeds in the world and is generally known for its milk production
because of which it serves to be fit as a pet. It is mostly found in Asia, South America and Bulgaria
possessing short horns and a massive body. They can dwell in hot and moderate climates where there
are sufficient pastures and water.

Romanian buffalo

As the name suggests, the Romanian buffalo is a Mediterranean type of buffalo that is used mainly for
milk and this is the main reason why it is reared as a pet. They can swim very easily and their main food
usually consists of the grass, the leaves and the stems available in pastures.

Surti
Surti is also a popular breed of water buffaloes that is found mainly in Asia and especially India. They are
available in medium size with a long head and convex shape of the horns. This type of water buffalo is
herbivorous and has a very strong condition of living in climates that are humid as well as moderate.

Bhadawari
Bhadawari is also an Asian water buffalo breed that is found mostly in India and is adaptive to terrestrial
and tropical habitat. The eating habit of this breed is very similar to the other breeds of buffaloes and it
can be said that these buffaloes are tamed as pets because of the high end milk production that they can
indulge in.

Niliravi
Niliravi is one exceptional water buffalo breed that is usually very large and comes in blue color. It has a
natural habitat that is terrestrial and is also recommended as one of the best water buffalo breeds used as
pets. The eating habit of this breed is generally the bark of trees and leaves that are dry along with grass.

Malaysian buffalo
Malaysian buffalo usually originated in Malaysia as the name suggests and can thrive in adverse
conditions of the climate. It is found in marshlands and is considered to thrive on food that is green.
Stems, leaves, barks and bushes usually make up the eating habit of this buffalo.

Kundi
Kundi is a well known breed of water buffalo that thrives in cool conditions and is found in Asia. This
buffalo is also a draught animal that can be used in the field and this is the reason why it is taken as a pet.
The eating habit of Kundi is quite similar to the other buffaloes in the water buffalo category and it also
ranks among the various types of popular water buffalo breeds.