The Tux cattle are a beautiful breed of cattle native to the Alpine region of Europe. They are a rare breed today and said to stem from the Herens breed.
The breed was probably named after the Tux village in the Tux Valley in Tyrol in Austria. The Tux cattle were originally common in Tyrol and was involved in breeding diverse other alpine breeds.
They were also used in the development of some other Russian cattle breeds. But now the Tux cattle breed has been displaced by more productive cattle breeds and is only kept in the Ziller Valley.
It is one of the older and endangered breeds of cattle, and only some 110 to 300 animals exist. Read more information about this cattle breed below.
Physical Characteristics of Tux Cattle
Tux cattle are medium to large sized animals with black or red hair on their coat. There are white spots on the pelvis, the tail root, on the udder and on the ventral abdomen. Their trunk is compact, broad and muscular. Their head is usually short and broad with strong horns. They have relatively short legs.
Average height of the cows is about 120-130 cm, and about 140 cm for the bulls. The bulls on average weight about 800-900 kg. And average body weight of the cows is about 550-600 kg. Photo and info from Wikipedia.
Uses
The Tux cattle can be used for many purposes. But they are mainly used for milk production.
Special Notes
Tux cattle are very hardy animals. They are frugal and were once kept on mountain pastures. They have a high potential for aggression, just like the Herens cattle.
The high potential for aggression of the Tux cattle, results in long fights between the cows. In ancient times they were selected on their fighting ability. And that resulted in decreased milk performance.
The cows are not among the very good milk producers. But on average they produce about 1500 kg of milk per year. Herens cows produce more milk than the Tux cows, almost double.
But the fat content on the milk is higher in Tux cow’s milk than the Herens cow’s milk. Milk of the Tux cow contain about 8 percent fat content, and Herens cow’s milk contain about 3.7 percent fat content. However, review full breed profile of this breed in the following table.
| Breed Name | Tux |
| Other Name | None |
| Breed Purpose | Milk |
| Special Notes | Active, Hardy, Aggressive |
| Breed Size | Medium to Large |
| Bulls | About 800-900 kg |
| Cows | About 550-600 kg |
| Climate Tolerance | All Climates |
| Coat Color | Black or Red with white spots |
| Horned | Yes |
| Milk Yield | Medium |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Country/Place of Origin | Europe |
