Malenaadu Gidda
Malenad Gidda cattle breed is a native of Western Ghats in Karnataka. The word gidda means dwarf and Malnad means a place receiving heavy rainfall. At present this cattle distributed predominately in Malanadu areas of Shivamogga, Hassan, Chikkamagaluru and coastal districts of Mangalore, Udupi, North Kanara and parts of Kodagu districts of Karnataka. The animals are active and resistant to major diseases such as foot and mouth disease.
Physical Characteristics:
- The animals are small in size with a compact body frame weighing 80-120 kgs
- The skin colour in a majority of the animals is black with light shades of fawn on the thigh and shoulder regions. Brown coloured animals with light fawn shades are also seen.
- The hooves, eyelids, tail switch, and horn are black in colour.
- A small hump is seen in males, while females have a bowl shaped udder. The teats are funnel in shape being broader at the base, narrowing downwards and ending with pointed tips.
- The tail is long and the tail switch almost touches the ground.
- This breed yields 0.5 to 4 litres of milk per day with a fat content of 5.5 to 8 per cent. The animals remain in milking for about 250 days in a year. The average lifespan of an adult animal is 9-12 years.
