Miniature cattle


Miniature cattle are found in various parts of the world. Some, such as the Dexter of Ireland and the Vechur of Kerala, India, are traditional breeds; others have been created by selective breeding. The Australian Lowline was the unexpected result of a scientific experiment. Some, but not all, miniature breeds display achondroplasia, or dwarfism.
Compared to larger cattle, miniature cattle require less space and less feed, and may be easier to handle. They do less damage to pasture land, do not need such high or strong fencing, and do not produce as much methane.

Breeds

BreedOriginHeight/weightImageNotes
Achhamzebu, Achham District of Nepal
Australian Lowlinederived from Aberdeen Angus in Australia
Dextertraditional Irish breed
Kasagarodtraditional breed, Kerala, India
Lagune or DahomeyBenin, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Gabon, Togo
Miniature Texas LonghornUnited Statesnot over 115 cm
Miniature Zebumodern breed register, United States
MinivacaMexicoabout developed from the 1970s at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México in Mexico City by selective breeding of Indu-Brasil for small size.
NiataUruguay, Argentina; now extinct
Panda cowUnited Statesrare type of black-and-white belted miniature; in 2011 the total number world-wide was estimated at 24 head.
PunganurAndhra Pradesh, India
SombaBenin, Togo
Vechurtraditional breed, Kerala, Indiaabout 87 cm

An American breeder, Richard Gradwohl, has developed eighteen different strains of miniature cattle. Miniature Galloway, Hereford and Holstein have been bred. In the United States, small zebuine cattle deriving from stock imported from Brazil, the Dominican Republic and Sweden may be registered as "Miniature Zebu"; in Australia, similar cattle may be known as "Nadudana". In the United States, Jersey cattle of the original island type may be known as "Miniature Jersey"; Jersey cows stand about and weigh some.
The Ethiopian Goffa and Guraghe breeds in the Abyssinian Shorthorned Zebu group are also small.