Australian Milking Zebu
An Australian dairy composite, Jersey in shape with the loose skin of its zebu parents
The Australian Milking Zebu is a composite dairy breed developed in Australia from the mid-1950s. Sahiwal and Red Sindhi cattle from Pakistan were crossed with Jerseys, and the result has Jersey markings and shape with the loose skin of its zebu parents; cows give about 2,700 kg of milk in a lactation.
- Developed by CSIRO in Australia from the mid-1950s
- Sahiwal and Red Sindhi cattle from Pakistan were crossed with Jerseys
- Illawarra, Guernsey and Friesian blood also went into the mix
- Selected for heat tolerance, milk yield and cattle tick resistance
- Cows give about 2,700 kg of milk in a lactation
What do Australian Milking Zebu cattle look like?
The Australian Milking Zebu is a composite dairy breed, a modern mix of breeds rather than an old landrace. In build and general appearance the animals follow Jersey cattle, with the same markings and shape. At the same time they carry the loose skin of their Sahiwal and Red Sindhi ancestors, a trait that marks their zebu background. Cows give roughly 2,700 kg of milk in a lactation. The breed was put together for milk in hot conditions, and everything about its look is the outcome of that work.
Where does the Australian Milking Zebu come from?
The breed was created in Australia. Work began in the mid-1950s under the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, known as CSIRO. Sahiwal and Red Sindhi cattle were brought from Pakistan and mated with Jersey cattle. A little Illawarra, Guernsey and Friesian blood was added as well. The aim was a dairy animal that could cope with heat and with the cattle tick, Boophilus microplus. Each generation was chosen strictly for heat tolerance, for milk production and for resistance to that tick, and the modern Australian Milking Zebu is the result of that long selection.
What the Australian Milking Zebu is known for
The breed exists because of two pressures of hot country farming: high temperatures and the cattle tick. Selection for heat tolerance and for tick resistance ran alongside selection for milk, so hardiness and yield were pursued together rather than one at the expense of the other. The payoff is an animal suited to warm, tick-infested country. Its loose skin, inherited from the zebu side of its parentage, is the visible sign of that ancestry.
How the Australian Milking Zebu is bred and kept
The breed was built by crossing rather than by keeping an old line pure. Sahiwal and Red Sindhi cattle from Pakistan supplied the tropical side, Jersey supplied the dairy side, and small amounts of Illawarra, Guernsey and Friesian blood went in too. From those crosses the breeders picked animals on three counts: how well they coped with heat, how much milk they gave and how little the cattle tick troubled them. Only animals that passed those tests went on to breed. Generation after generation of that culling and choosing produced the modern type.
Australian Milking Zebu, drawn
What the Australian Milking Zebu is kept for
This is a dairy breed, kept for its milk. Cows give about 2,700 kg in a lactation, a useful yield from an animal that has to cope with heat and ticks at the same time. The Jersey inheritance shows in the shape of the body and in the markings, and the zebu inheritance shows in the loose skin. The breed was developed for milking in warm country where the cattle tick is a problem.
The land and climate of the Australian Milking Zebu
The breed was developed in Australia for warm conditions. Heat tolerance was one of the three qualities its breeders selected for, which tells you what kind of country it is meant for. Tick resistance was another, and that matters wherever the cattle tick Boophilus microplus occurs. The loose skin inherited from the zebu parent breeds is a feature of animals kept in such places.
At a glance: where it belongs
Land and climate
From the Australian Milking Zebu
Questions people ask about Australian Milking Zebu
Where does the Australian Milking Zebu come from?
It comes from Australia, where the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, or CSIRO, began developing it in the mid-1950s. Sahiwal and Red Sindhi cattle were brought in from Pakistan and crossed with Jersey cattle, with small amounts of Illawarra, Guernsey and Friesian blood.
What is it kept for?
Milk. It is a dairy breed, and cows give about 2,700 kg in a lactation. The breeding programme also selected hard for heat tolerance and for resistance to the cattle tick Boophilus microplus, so the animal can keep milking in hot, tick country.
What does it look like?
It has the colour, markings and general body shape of Jersey cattle, so it looks much like a Jersey. The difference is the loose skin it inherits from its Sahiwal and Red Sindhi ancestors, a feature it takes from its zebu parent breeds.
How much milk does a cow give?
Cows give approximately 2,700 kg of milk in a lactation. That figure comes with the breed's other qualities: it was selected for heat tolerance and for resistance to the cattle tick as well as for milk production, so yield and hardiness were bred together.
Which breeds went into it?
The main parents were the Sahiwal and the Red Sindhi, both from Pakistan, crossed with Jersey cattle. A small amount of Illawarra, Guernsey and Friesian genetics was included too. Strict selection over the years produced the modern Australian Milking Zebu.
Good reading and sources
- Australian Milking Zebu on WikipediaEncyclopedia
- More photos on Wikimedia CommonsPhotos and video
- Wikidata recordOpen data
The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Australian Milking Zebu", written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, and from its Wikidata record (CC0). EveryCow rewrote the text in its own words, with AI assistance, and compares every page with the article to make sure no passage is copied. It may be reused under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with a link back.
It may contain mistakes. Sizes, colours and customs differ from one herd, valley or breeder to the next. Folk beliefs are described as tradition, never as advice. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-16.
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