Lowland Cattle Husbandry

Most Bhutanese farmers keep cattle on their farms and combine agricultural farming and livestock. They keep some cows near their home for daily supply of milk but the main herd of cows are kept in the mountains and looked after by a cowherder. The main herd is also moved from place to place for better meadows and forests to graze on and to lower altitudes in the winter and higher valleys in the summer. The most coveted lowland cattle in traditional Bhutan is the jatsham cow, a female crossbreed between a cow of Tibetan stock and an Indian mithun. The number of jatsham and its female offsprings and the size of the herd determined the wealth of a traditional household.