Kankrej
A grey zebu from the dry Rann of Kutch, kept for milk and for work oxen
The Kankrej is a humped zebu breed from the arid Rann of Kutch in Gujarat, India, and neighbouring Rajasthan, with the same cattle called Kankaraj in Sindh, Pakistan. It is a dual-purpose animal: cows are milked and oxen are worked, and the coat is grey, shading from silver to dark.
- Dual-purpose zebu: cows are milked and oxen are used for draught work
- Both sexes are horned; coat is grey, from silver to dark, on dark skin
- Cows average about 431 kg, bulls about 590 kg
- FAO in 2007 and DAD-IS in 2026 list the breed as not at risk
- Cattle sent to Brazil from about 1870 helped to form the Guzerá
What do Kankrej cattle look like?
The Kankrej is a zebu breed, so it carries a hump on the shoulders. Both cows and bulls grow horns. The coat runs from a pale, silvery grey through to a darker shade, and the skin beneath the hair is dark. An average cow weighs around 431 kg; an average bull about 590 kg. The breed is classed as dual-purpose, meaning it is kept both for milk and for work. In its home districts it also goes by local names such as Bannai, Nagar and Talabda. It belongs to the zebuine group, the humped cattle of South Asia.
Where does the Kankrej come from?
The breed's home ground is the dry country of the Rann of Kutch in Gujarat, India, together with the neighbouring parts of Rajasthan. In Pakistan, in Tharparkar District in Sindh, these cattle go under the name Kankaraj. From about 1870 onwards, animals were shipped to Brazil. There they entered the breeding that produced the Guzerá, and the Guzerá in turn had a hand in shaping the American Brahman. The 1977 count in India stood at 465,000 head.
What the Kankrej is known for
The Kankrej belongs to a hot, dry part of the world and is grazed there, on the arid country of Kutch, Rajasthan and Sindh. That setting has made it a hardy breed in dry conditions. It is a working zebu as much as a milking one, and its dual-purpose character is what it is known for: a cow that gives milk, a bullock that can pull. It is a humped animal of the zebuine type.
How the Kankrej is bred and kept
Kankrej cattle are bred and kept on the dry plains of Gujarat, Rajasthan and Sindh. Breeders run them for two jobs at once, milking the cows and training the oxen to work. Government censuses keep track of numbers in India and Pakistan. The breed's blood also flows far from home: animals sent to Brazil from around 1870 took part in forming the Guzerá, and the Guzerá then fed into the making of the American Brahman.
Kankrej, drawn
What the Kankrej is kept for
This is a dual-purpose breed, kept for milk and for draught. Bullocks, which are castrated male cattle, serve as work animals, pulling ploughs and carts. Cows are milked. The breed also had a part in beef breeding abroad: cattle sent to Brazil from about 1870 helped to form the Guzerá, and the American Brahman owes part of its make-up to the Guzerá. At home the two everyday jobs remain milk and traction.
The land and climate of the Kankrej
The Kankrej belongs to an arid landscape. Its home is the Rann of Kutch, a dry region in Gujarat, and the adjoining country in Rajasthan; across the border in Pakistan it is found in Tharparkar District in Sindh. The land there is hot, low in rainfall and often dusty. The cattle graze this open, dry country and are known for managing in it.
At a glance: where it belongs
Land and climate
Numbers, conservation and the herd book
Censuses give a rough picture. The last official count in India was made in 1977, when 465,000 Kankrej cattle were recorded. Pakistan's figure for 2006 was 273,000 head. For 2022, reports put the Indian population at 1.58 to 2.22 million animals. Both the FAO, in 2007, and DAD-IS, in 2026, list the breed as not at risk.
From the Kankrej
Questions people ask about Kankrej
Where does the Kankrej come from?
It comes from the arid Rann of Kutch in Gujarat, India, and the neighbouring parts of Rajasthan. In Tharparkar District in Sindh, Pakistan, the same breed is known as Kankaraj.
What is the Kankrej kept for?
It is a dual-purpose breed. Cows are kept for milk, and bullocks are kept for draught work, pulling ploughs and carts. That double role of milking and working is the reason it is classed as dual-purpose.
Does it have horns, and what colour is it?
Both cows and bulls carry horns, so it is a horned breed. The coat is grey, ranging from silver to dark, and the skin underneath is dark as well.
How heavy is a Kankrej?
Cows weigh about 431 kg on average, and bulls about 590 kg. That makes it a substantial zebu rather than a small one.
Is the breed under threat?
No. The FAO in 2007 and DAD-IS in 2026 both list it as not at risk, and the population reported for India in 2022 was between 1.58 and 2.22 million.
Good reading and sources
- Kankrej on WikipediaEncyclopedia
- More photos on Wikimedia CommonsPhotos and video
- Wikidata recordOpen data
The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Kankrej", 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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