Worlds Biggest Cow

Also referred to as cattle, cows are big domesticated ungulates. They belong to the subfamily Bovinae, which are collectively classified as Bos primigenius. They are highly important to society because they function as draft animals, particularly for pulling plows and carts. As dairy animals, people raise them for their milk, which is very important in producing different kinds of dairy products. More importantly, they are raised for their meat, which may come in the form of veal or beef. In addition to these interesting details, it is also nice to learn other things such as the world’s biggest cow.

The Biggest Cow in the World

The biggest breed of cow is the Chianina. As the largest type of cow, the males of this Italian breed grow at the average height 6 feet or 1.8 meters high. It terms of weight, these cows can weigh as much as 3,836 pounds or 1,740 kilograms. For females, the average height is 5 feet or 1.5 meters high. Meanwhile, these cows can weigh as much as 2,400 pounds or 1,088.62 kilograms. The heaviest bull ever recorded was named Donetto, which weighed 3,836 pounds or 1,740 kilograms.

Additional Facts and Other Interesting Details

The meat of Chianina is widely used in preparing a Tuscan cuisine called Bistecca alla Fiorentina, which means Florentine-style beefsteak. As the oldest cattle breed, it originated within the Chiana Valley area in Italy. Based on history books, it has been in existence since the period of the Roman Empire. It was developed originally for draught and meat purposes.

In terms of appearance, this breed is characterized by a black switch and white hair. Furthermore, these cows are known for their black skin pigmentation. In addition, they are known for their gentle disposition as well as their tolerance to heat. This particular breed is raised for three major reasons, namely its tolerance to heat, high quality meat and favorable growth rate. More so, this cow breed is tolerant to insects and diseases compared to other domesticated cattle. Because of these qualities, this cow breed is widely raised in many different places, one of which is Brazil.

Each cow has one stomach, which is subdivided into four compartments, namely the abomasum, omasum, reticulum and rumen as the biggest. In case a cow ingests metal objects, they will go straight to the smallest compartment called reticulum, where it is possible for it to develop hardware disease. These divisions are called by other names like ‘true stomach’ for the abomasum, ‘many plies’ for the omasum and ‘honeycomb’ for the reticulum.