Murrah buffaloes in the Philippine Carabao Center (PCC) at its Central Mindanao University (CMU) facility in Maramag, Bukidnon
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Conservation status | Domesticated |
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Country of origin | India |
Distribution | Azerbaijan, Brazil, Colombia, China, Ecuador, Guatemala, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Nepal, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Viet Nam, Venezuela |
Use | Dairy |
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Coat | Black |
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The Murrah breed of Water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) is a breed of domestic water buffalo kept for dairy production. Its home tract stretches around the southern parts of Haryana comprising the districts of rohtak, Jind, Hisar, Jhajhar, Fatehabad, Gurgaon and the Union Territory of Delhi. It is originally from Punjab and Haryana states of India and has been used to improve the milk production of dairy buffalo in other countries, such as Italy, Bulgaria and Egypt.
In Brazil this breed of buffalo is used for production of meat and also milk. In India, the Murrah buffalo named Rani of Lakshmi Dairy Farm in Punjab set a new record of 26.335 kg of milk in the 2016 National Livestock Competition and Expo. This breed of buffalo sells for a high price.
The Murrah buffalo is jet black in colour, sometimes with white markings on the face or legs. Bulls weigh around 550 kg and cows around 450 kg. They typically have short and tightly curved horns. Average milk production is 2200 litres in a lactation period of 310 days. Eyes are black, active and prominent in females but slightly shrunken in males and should not be walled i.e. cornea should not have whiteness. Neck is long and thin in females and thick and massive in males. Ears are short, thin and alert.