Pinzgau Cattle
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| Conservation status | FAO (2007): not at risk |
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| Other names | Pinzgau |
| Country of origin | Austria |
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| Standard | |
| Use | formerly triple-purpose, meat, milk and draught |
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| Coat | dark mahogany red, with a broad white stripe along the back and underparts |
| Horn status | usually horned; there is a hornless sub-type |
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The Pinzgauer is a breed of domestic cattle from the Pinzgau region of the federal state of Salzburg in Austria. It has distinctive colouring, with chestnut-brown sides and white back and underside. It was in the past a triple-purpose breed, raised for meat, milk and draught use. There is a naturally sub-type, the Jochberg Hummel. In 2007 the breed was not considered by the FAO to be at risk.
According to genetic and morphological studies, the Pinzgauer cattle breed is most closely related to North German lowland breeds.
The Pinzgauer was first referred to as a breed in 1846, and prior to this called "Pinzgauer Fasel" or "Pinzgauer Schlag". In the 19th century, they were bred into strong stock for work on farms, at breweries, and in sugar-beet areas. In its heyday, the Pinzgauer became the most popular cattle breed in Austria-Hungary, subsequently expanding through Eastern Europe. The Bavarian Pinzgauer Cattle Breeding Association was founded in 1896. By December 1890, the Pinzgauer population had grown to 101,880 in Bavaria, but it eventually collapsed as a result of industrialization after World War I. Demand for the cattle decreased, and the breed was replaced by better milk-producing breeds such as Fleckvieh cattle. By 1930, Bavaria had only 85,000 Pingzauer cattle.
A naturally type, the Jochberger Hummel, was considered a separate breed until 1997, when it was merged into the Pinzgauer herd book. These cattle descend from a single, almost totally white calf that was born in 1834 in Tyrol. They were considered crippled and useless because they could not put on a yoke. Now Pinzgauer are not yoked, and the hornless breed is well adapted to modern husbandry. There are now fewer than 50 hornless Pinzgauer cattle in the world, so the type is endangered. Since 1988, there have only been two hornless bulls at the insemination station near Salzburg.
The animals are auburn in colour. A luscious chestnut-colour is the breeding target. Black animals have occurred, but rarely, and were once seen as a curse. After 1900, black bulls were removed from the breeding system, and the black colour vanished. All Pinzgauers have the typical finched pattern in common: a broad white stripe lengthwise along the whole back. The abdomen, chest, udder, and tail are white as well.
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Wikipedia