The Bhadawari buffalo is a breed of water buffalo from India. It is actually an improved water buffalo breed from Uttar Pradesh, India.
The breed is kept mainly for milk production in the Agra and Etawah districts, and also the Bhind and Morena districts of Madhya Pradesh. It is also known as Bhadwari and Etawah.
Buffaloes actually play an indispensable role in the Indian economy. And buffalo milk account for approximately 56 percent of total milk production in the nation, and 64 percent of the world’s production.
Contribution of the buffaloes has been overwhelming due to their ability to thrive under harsh climatic conditions and low requirement of input contribution.
The Bhadawari buffalo is specifically renowned for the high content of buttermilk fat found in their milk (which ranges from 6 to as high as 13 percent).
These animals are efficient in converting animal feed into butterfat. And their unique, advantageous profile therefore attracts farmers of many developing countries to interbred them with one of the best breed of buffaloes, the Murrah buffalo breed.
Increasingly important in the livestock industry of countries with agricultural-based economies such as Bulgaria, the Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia and Nepal, the resulting hybrid breed of the Bhadawari and Murrah both enhances the milk production of other low-yielding breeds and creates a better market for liquid milk. Read some more information about this buffalo breed below.
Bhadawari Buffalo Characteristics
The Bhadawari buffaloes are medium sized animals with wedge-shaped body. They have comparatively small and light head, bulging out between the horns and sloping down slightly towards the forehead.
The head is slightly heavier and coarse in males. They are generally copper colored with scanty hair, which are black at the roots and reddish-brown at the tips (sometimes the hairs are completely brown).
There are two white lines at the lower side of the neck, which is a distinct feature of these animals. Their horns are curled slightly outwards, parallel to the neck with the tips curled upwards.
Their tail is long, thin and flexible running down the hocks with black and white or pure white switch. Ears of the Bhadawari buffalo are of average size which are rough and pendulous.
The udder of the cows is not so well developed as in the case of Murrah, but the milk veins are fairly prominent. The teats are of medium size, though not of uniform length.
Average body height of the mature bulls is around 128 cm, and around 124 cm for the cows. The mature bulls can reach around 475 kg live body weight, and the cows can reach around 425 kg.[1].
Uses
The Bhadawari buffalo is a dairy buffalo breed. It is raised mainly for milk production.
Special Notes
The Bhadawari buffaloes have an excellent ability. They are famous for the efficient ability to utilize low quality coarse fodder available in the area.
They mainly subsists on coarse feed, straw and corn products, roughage such as barley, wheat, straw, cornstalks, sorghum and sugar cane residuals.
They can survive on low quality crop residues and green forage under dire circumstances.
Although they are not too high in milk production and total lactation yield is lower, but the fat content in their milk has been recorded as high as 13 percent.
The cows generally lactate during 272 days with an average milk yield of 752-810 kg in this period. However, review full breed profile of the Bhadawari buffalo in the table below.
| Breed Name | Bhadawari |
| Other Name | Also known as Bhadwari and Etawah |
| Breed Purpose | Milk |
| Special Notes | Very hardy, have the efficient ability to utilize low quality coarse fodder available in the area, they mainly subsists on coarse feed, straw and corn products, can survive on low quality crop residues and green forage under dire circumstances, not too high in milk production, but the milk is of very high quality, fat content in the milk has been recorded as high as 13 percent |
| Breed Size | Medium |
| Bulls | Around 475 kg |
| Cows | Around 425 kg |
| Climate Tolerance | All climates |
| Color | Copper-colored and grayish black |
| Rarity | Common |
| Country/Place of Origin | India |
