
What is the difference between bovine and cattle?
is that bovine is (not comparable) of or pertaining to cattle while beef is being a bovine animal that is being raised for its meat. As nouns the difference between bovine and beef is that bovine is an animal of the family bovidae , including cattle, buffaloes and bison while beef is (uncountable) the meat from a cow, bull or other bovines.
What is the difference between an ox and a cow?
What’s the Difference between Cow and Ox?
- Cow. A cow is a large female animal that is kept on farms for its milk. ...
- Oxen. An ox is a bull that has been castrated. ...
- Differences between cows and oxen. Cows and oxen come from the same species: cattle or “Bos Taurus” for the scientific name. ...
- Conclusion. That’s it for this new difference, I hope you liked this post, and that it was helpful to you. ...
What animals are bovine?
The group was among those asking a judge to issue a temporary restraining order to prevent federal officials from shooting the animals from a helicopter. Wildlife officials say the cattle are damaging the environment, but ranchers fear branded cattle may ...
What is the difference between a cow and a bull?
• Bull is a male, but cow is a female. However, sometimes cow could be both male and female of cattle, but bull is always a male. • Bull is largely built and stronger than a cow. • Bulls are more vocal than cows. • Bulls are more aggressive than cows, and the needed restraining means vary accordingly between them.

What makes an animal a bovine?
A bovine refers to a domestic animal of the species Bos taurus (cattle) or Bubalus bubalis (water buffalo), and also includes hybrids like Beefalo.
What is the difference between cattle and bovine?
All of these are cattle. As for the male cattle, the male can be a bull calf – if it's a young male bovine, a steer – if it's a neutered male bull, an ox – a neutered male bovine used as a draft animal or a bull – an uncastrated male bovine of any age.
Are cows called bovine?
Read a brief summary of this topic. cow, in common parlance, a domestic bovine, regardless of sex and age, usually of the species Bos taurus. In precise usage, the name is given to mature females of several large mammals, including cattle (bovines), moose, elephants, sea lions, and whales.
What does the term bovine refer to?
British Dictionary definitions for bovine bovine. / (ˈbəʊvaɪn) / adjective. of, relating to, or belonging to the Bovini (cattle), a bovid tribe including domestic cattle. (of people) dull; sluggish; stolid.
Are pigs bovine?
Horses=Equine, Cows=Bovine, Pigs=Swine.
Is a buffalo a bovine?
Bovine comes from the Latin word for "cow", though the biological family called the Bovidae actually includes not only cows and oxen but also goats, sheep, bison, and buffalo.
Is a bull a bovine?
A bull, also known as a sire, is a mature male bovine that is at least 2 years old used for breeding purposes. Bulls are usually not used for meat.
Is bovine a pig or a cow?
Bovine is a term relating to cattle. Caprine is a term relating to goats. Equine is a term relating to horses, mules, zebras, and asses.
Is an ox a bovine?
An ox /ˈɒks/ (PL: oxen, /ˈɒksən/), also known as a bullock (in BrE, AusE, and IndE), is a male bovine trained and used as a draft animal. Oxen are commonly castrated adult male cattle; castration inhibits testosterone and aggression, which makes the males docile and safer to work with.
Are goats bovine?
bovid, (family Bovidae), any hoofed mammal in the family Bovidae (order Artiodactyla), which includes the antelopes, sheep, goats, cattle, buffalo, and bison.
Is a Moose a bovine?
A male moose is called a bull, a female moose is called a cow, and a young moose is called a calf. A group of moose is called a herd. The plural form of moose is "moose”....Moose.Moose Temporal range: Early Pleistocene to RecentFamily:CervidaeSubfamily:CapreolinaeGenus:Alces Gray, 1821Species:A. alces17 more rows
Is a water buffalo a cow?
Although water buffaloes, except for the horns, show a superficial resemblance to cattle, they are genetically different. Cattle have 60 chromosomes; the swamp buffalo, the breed with backswept horns, has 48 and the river buffalo, with curled horns, has 50.
What animals are bull/cow/calf used for?
Outside of the deer and cattle families, bull/cow/calf is used for other very large animals like elephants, rhinos and whales.
What is the bull/cow/calf convention?
Besides moose, the bull/cow/calf convention is used for other large members of the deer family, like elk (wapiti) and caribou. Outside of the deer and cattle families, bull/cow/calf is used for other very. Continue Reading. Because those aren’t (universally or exclusively) “bovine” and “cervine” terms, as you’ve characterized them.
What are the names of the deer family?
This includes red deer, swamp deer (barasingha) and sambar deer. So actually the only terms exclusive to the deer family are stag, hind and fawn, but usually stag and hind are used for larger species and fawn for smaller ones.
What is the buck/doe/fawn family?
Both sets of terms overlap the deer family but include other animals as well, and neither is exclusive to any one family: Buck/doe/fawn is used for the smaller species the deer family, but the buck/doe part of it is also used for other animals like goats, rabbits and sometimes kangaroos.
Is a elk a cow?
There is an assumption here that isn’t true. Elk/Wapiti are also deer and the males are also bulls and the females are cows. Male and female caribou, also deer, are bulls and cows, too.
Where does beef come from?
Beef comes from the French vocabulary. When the Normans took over Britain in 1066, they brought the French language with them, and French was brought into everyday life (via The Daily Meal ). The French conquerors were of a higher class than the Anglo-Saxons who lived in Britain at the time.
What is the origin of the word "pork"?
The same can be said for the meat called "pork" — it comes from the French word, porc, which means pig. Interestingly, chicken was initially part of this phenomenon as well. The French word for chicken, poulet, was turned into "pullet" — however, over the years, this evolved into a term used only for young hens, and not all chickens in general.
Why do bovids have horns?
Male horn development has been linked to sexual selection, Horns are small spikes in the monogamous duikers and other small antelopes, whereas in the polygynous, they are large and elaborately formed (for example in a spiral structure, as in the giant eland ). Thus, to some extent, horns depict the degree of competition among males in a species. However, the presence of horns in females is likely due to natural selection. The horns of females are usually smaller than those of males, and are sometimes of a different shape. The horns of female bovids are believed to have evolved for defence against predators or to express territoriality, as nonterritorial females, which are able to use crypsis for predator defence, often do not have horns. Females possess horns only in half of the bovid genera, and females in these genera are heavier than those in the rest. Females use horns mainly for stabbing.
What is the family of bovids?
The Bovidae comprise the biological family of cloven-hoofed, ruminant mammals that includes bison, African buffalo, water buffalo, antelopes, sheep, goats, muskoxen, and domestic cattle. A member of this family is called a bovid.
How do bovids fight?
Fighting techniques differ amongst the bovid families and also depend on their build. While the hartebeest fight on knees, others usually fight on all fours. Gazelles of various sizes use different methods of combat. Gazelles usually box, and in serious fights may clash and fence, consisting of hard blows from short range. Ibex, goat and sheep males stand upright and clash into each other downwards. Wildebeest use powerful head butting in aggressive clashes. If horns become entangled, the opponents move in a circular manner to unlock them. Muskoxen will ram into each other at high speeds. As a rule, only two bovids of equal build and level of defence engage in a fight, which is intended to determine the superior of the two. Individuals that are evidently inferior to others would rather flee than fight; for example, immature males do not fight with the mature bulls. Generally, bovids direct their attacks on the opponent's head rather than its body. The S-shaped horns, such as those on the impala, have various sections that help in ramming, holding, and stabbing. Serious fights leading to injury are rare.
What do bovids do?
Bovids typically rest before dawn, during midday, and after dark. They have various methods of social organisation and social behaviour, which are classified into solitary and gregarious behaviour. Bovids use different forms of vocal, olfactory, and tangible communication. Most species alternately feed and ruminate throughout the day. While small bovids forage in dense and closed habitat, larger species feed on high-fiber vegetation in open grasslands. Most bovids are polygynous. Mature bovids mate at least once a year and smaller species may even mate twice. In some species, neonate bovids remain hidden for a week to two months, regularly nursed by their mothers; in other species, neonates are followers, accompanying their dams, rather than tending to remain hidden.
What are the different types of bovids?
Further, these types may each be divided into territorial and nonterritorial behaviour . Small bovids such as the klipspringer, oribi, and steenbok are generally solitary and territorial. They hold small territories into which other members of the species are not allowed to enter. These antelopes form monogamous pairs. Many species such as the dik-dik use pheromone secretions from the preorbital glands and sometimes dung, as well, to mark their territories. The offspring disperse at the time of adolescence, and males must acquire territories prior to mating. The bushbuck is the only bovid that is both solitary and not territorial. This antelope hardly displays aggression, and tends to isolate itself or form loose herds, though in a favourable habitat, several bushbuck may be found quite close to one another.
How much does a bovid weigh?
The royal antelope, in sharp contrast, is only 25 cm (9.8 in) tall and weighs at most 3 kg (6.6 lb). The klipspringer, another small antelope, stands 45–60 cm (18–24 in) at the shoulder and weighs just 10–20 kg (22–44 lb).
Where do bovids live?
The greatest diversities of bovids occur in Africa. The maximum concentration of species is in the savannas of eastern Africa. Other bovid species also occur in Europe, Asia, and North America. Bovidae includes three of the five domesticated mammals whose use has spread outside their original ranges, namely cattle, sheep, and goats.
What is a cow?
For other uses, see Cow (disambiguation). Cattle, or cows (female) and bulls (male), are large domesticated cloven-hooved herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos taurus.
Where did the term "cattle" come from?
Cattle did not originate as the term for bovine animals. It was borrowed from Anglo-Norman catel, itself from medieval Latin capitale 'principal sum of money, capital', itself derived in turn from Latin caput 'head'. Cattle originally meant movable personal property, especially livestock of any kind, as opposed to real property (the land, which also included wild or small free-roaming animals such as chickens—they were sold as part of the land). The word is a variant of chattel (a unit of personal property) and closely related to capital in the economic sense. The term replaced earlier Old English feoh 'cattle, property', which survives today as fee (cf. German: Vieh, Dutch: vee, Gothic: faihu ).
How much does a cow weigh?
The weight of adult cattle varies, depending on the breed. Smaller kinds, such as Dexter and Jersey adults, range between 272 to 454 kg (600 to 1,000 lb). Large Continental breeds, such as Charolais, Marchigiana, Belgian Blue and Chianina adults range from 635 to 1,134 kg (1,400 to 2,500 lb). British breeds, such as Hereford, Angus, and Shorthorn, mature at between 454 to 907 kg (1,000 to 2,000 lb), occasionally higher, particularly with Angus and Hereford. Bulls are larger than cows of the same breed by up to a few hundred kilograms. Chianina bulls can weigh up to 1,500 kg (3,300 lb); British bulls, such as Angus and Hereford, can weigh as little as 907 kg (2,000 lb) to as much as 1,361 kg (3,000 lb).
What are cattle used for?
They are used as riding animals and draft animals ( oxen or bullocks, which pull carts, plows and other implements). Another product of cattle is their dung, which can be used to create manure or fuel. In some regions, such as parts of India, cattle have significant religious meaning.
How many quarters are there in a cow's udder?
A cow's udder contains two pairs of mammary glands, (commonly referred to as teats) creating four "quarters". The front ones are referred to as fore quarters and the rear ones rear quarters. Synchronization of cattle ovulation to benefit dairy farming may be accomplished via induced ovulation techniques.
What is a Bos taurus?
Bos indicus. Bos longifrons. Cattle, or cows (female) and bulls (male), are large domesticated cloven-hooved herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos taurus.
Why are animal rights activists concerned about cattle?
Animal rights activists have criticized the treatment of cattle, claiming that common practices in cattle husbandry, slaughter and entertainment unnecessarily cause fear, stress, and pain. They advocate for abstaining from the consumption of cattle-related animal products and cattle-based entertainment.
Why is it important to understand bovine behaviour?
Understanding bovine behaviour is also important for those who do not understand or who have a fear of cattle, because understanding can allay the reasons for fear and hopefully, will help you to build more respect for these animals.
What is the psychology of cows?
Bovine psychology and behaviour is something that every cattle producer must know in order to own, work around and handle these animals.
How to learn about animal behaviour?
Read some books on animal behaviour or herding/handling cattle. Books that have been written by people who have studied animal behaviour are the best to start with.
How to stop a cow from headbutting my dog?
She will stop head-butting and attempting to trample the dog when you've got control of the dog.
How to get rid of cattle?
2. Go to a farm or ranch to observe and study actual cattle behaviour. Make sure the animals cannot see or smell you, otherwise they will come up to the fence and stare at you, expecting some form of treat, or run away where you cannot observe them.
Is it dangerous to have a bull with young calves?
Be cautious around bulls and cows with young calves. Both types of animals can be potentially dangerous, especially towards a human they don't know nor trust.
Do cows fight steers?
Very rarely does fighting between cows, heifers or steers end in death. However, it is more common in bulls, especially between two rivals that are of the same size as the other, or if an older bull feels that the younger bull is a threat that should be dealt with in more ways than trying to get him to submit to the older fellow. This is even more of a risk factor if one of the bulls is horned.
What is the symbolism of cows?
Cows as Symbol of Sacrifice. Cows form the core of religious sacrifices, for without ghee or clarified liquid butter, which is produced from cow's milk, no sacrifice can be performed. In the Mahabharata, we have Bhishma saying: "Cows represent sacrifice. Without them, there can be no sacrifice….
When was the cow first venerated?
History of the Holy Cow. The cow was venerated as the mother goddess in the early Mediterranean civilizations. The cow became important in India, first in the Vedic period (1500 - 900 BCE), but only as a symbol of wealth.
What did Hinduism sacrifice cows for?
Hinduism and Islam: A Comparative Study, however, says that the cow used to be slaughtered by the ancient Hindus for beef as well as sacrifice. "There are clear evidences in the Rig Veda, the most sacred Hindu scripture, that the cow used to be sacrificed by Hindus for religious purposes.".
What is cow dung?
Cow Dung. Cows are also thought to be cleansers and sanctifiers. The cow dung is an efficacious disinfectant and often used as fuel in lieu of firewood. In the scriptures, we find the sage Vyasa saying that cows are the most efficacious cleansers of all.
Why do Indian cows have bushy tails?
Because the cow is respected as a sacred animal, it's allowed to roam unharmed, and they are pretty used to the traffic and the rhythm of the city . So, you can see them roaming the streets in towns and cities, grazing unmindfully on the roadside grass verges ...
Why is the cow a symbol of the earth?
As opposed to the West, where the cow is widely considered as nothing better than walking hamburgers, in India, the cow is believed to be a symbol of the earth - because it gives so much yet asks nothing in return. Because of its great economic importance, it makes good sense to protect the cow.
What is the symbol of respect for cattle?
Bull Temples. Nandi Bull , a vehicle of the gods, is considered the symbol of respect for all male cattle. The Nandi Bull holy site at Madurai and the Shiva temple at Mahabalipuram are the most venerated bovine shrines. Even non-Hindus are allowed to enter the 16th century Bull Temple in Bangalore.

Etymology
Taxonomy
- The family Bovidae is placed in the order Artiodactyla (which includes the even-toed ungulates). It includes 143 extant species, accounting for nearly 55% of the ungulates, and 300 known extinct species. Until the beginning of the 21st century it was understood that the family Moschidae (musk deer) was sister to Cervidae. However, a 2003 phylogenetic study by Alexandre Hassanin …
Evolution
- Early Miocene and before
In the early Miocene, bovids began diverging from the cervids (deer) and giraffids. The earliest bovids, whose presence in Africa and Eurasia in the latter part of early Miocene (20 Mya) has been ascertained, were small animals, somewhat similar to modern gazelles, and probably lived in wo… - Middle Miocene
The middle Miocene marked the spread of the bovids into China and the Indian subcontinent. According to Vrba, the radiation of the subfamily Alcelaphinae began in the latter part of middle Miocene. The Caprinae tribes probably diverged in the early middle Miocene. The Caprini emerg…
Characteristics
- All bovids have the similar basic form - a snout with a blunt end, one or more pairs of horns (generally present on males) immediately after the oval or pointed ears, a distinct neck and limbs, and a tail varying in length and bushiness among the species. Most bovids exhibit sexual dimorphism, with males usually larger as well as heavier than females. Sexual dimorphism is m…
Ecology and Behaviour
- The bovids have various methods of social organisation and social behaviour, which are classified into solitary and gregarious behaviour. Further, these types may each be divided into territorial and nonterritorial behaviour. Small bovids such as the klipspringer, oribi, and steenbok are generally solitary and territorial. They hold small territories into which other members of the species are n…
Distribution
- Most of the diverse bovid species occur in Africa. The maximum concentration is in the savannas of eastern Africa. Depending on their feeding habits, several species have radiated over large stretches of land, and hence several variations in dental and limb morphology are observed. Duikers inhabit the equatorial rainforests, sitatunga, and lechwe occur near swamps, eland inha…
Interaction with Humans
- Domesticated animals
The domestication of bovids has contributed to shifting the dependence of human beings from hunting and gathering to agriculture. The Bovidae includes three of the six large domesticated herbivores whose use has spread outside their original ranges, namely cattle, sheep, and goats; … - Animal products
Dairy products such as milk, butter, ghee, yoghurt, buttermilk and cheese are manufactured largely from domestic cattle, though the milk of sheep, goat, yak, and buffalo is also used in some parts of the world and for gourmet products. For example, buffalo milk is used to make mozzarella in I…
External Links
- "Bovidae" . Encyclopædia Britannica(11th ed.). 1911.
- "Bovidæ" . Collier's New Encyclopedia. 1921.
Overview
Cattle (Bos taurus) are large domesticated bovines. They are most widespread species of the genus Bos. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult males are referred to as bulls.
Cattle are commonly raised as livestock for meat (beef or veal, see beef cattle), for milk (see dairy cattle), and for hides, which are used to make leather. They are used as riding animals and draft animals (oxen or bullocks, which pull carts, plows and other implements). Another product of cattl…
Terminology
In general, the same words are used in different parts of the world, but with minor differences in the definitions. The terminology described here contrasts the differences in definition between the United Kingdom and other British-influenced parts of the world such as Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and the United States.
Taxonomy
Cattle were originally identified as three separate species: Bos taurus, the European or "taurine" cattle (including similar types from Africa and Asia); Bos indicus, the Indicine or "zebu"; and the extinct Bos primigenius, the aurochs. The aurochs is ancestral to both zebu and taurine cattle. They were later reclassified as one species, Bos taurus, with the aurochs, zebu, and taurine cattle as subspecies. However, this taxonomy is contentious and some sources prefer the separate sp…
Etymology
Cattle did not originate as the term for bovine animals. It was borrowed from Anglo-Norman catel, itself from medieval Latin capitale 'principal sum of money, capital', itself derived in turn from Latin caput 'head'. Cattle originally meant movable personal property, especially livestock of any kind, as opposed to real property (the land, which also included wild or small free-roaming animals such as chickens—they were sold as part of the land). The word is a variant of chattel (a unit of personal …
Characteristics
Cattle are large quadrupedal ungulate mammals with cloven hooves. Most breeds have horns, which can be as large as the Texas Longhorn or small like a scur. Careful genetic selection has allowed polled (hornless) cattle to become widespread.
Cattle are ruminants, meaning their digestive system is highly specialized to allow the consumption of difficult to digest plants as food. Cattle have one stomach with four compartments, the rumen, r…
Cognition
In laboratory studies, young cattle are able to memorize the locations of several food sources and retain this memory for at least 8 hours, although this declined after 12 hours. Fifteen-month-old heifers learn more quickly than adult cows which have had either one or two calvings, but their longer-term memory is less stable. Mature cattle perform well in spatial learning tasks and have a good long-term memory in these tests. Cattle tested in a radial arm maze are able to remember t…
Temperament and emotions
In cattle, temperament can affect production traits such as carcass and meat quality or milk yield as well as affecting the animal's overall health and reproduction. Cattle temperament is defined as "the consistent behavioral and physiological difference observed between individuals in response to a stressor or environmental challenge and is used to describe the relatively stable difference in the behavioral predisposition of an animal, which can be related to psychobiological mechanism…
Senses
Cattle use all of the five widely recognized sensory modalities. These can assist in some complex behavioural patterns, for example, in grazing behaviour. Cattle eat mixed diets, but when given the opportunity, show a partial preference of approximately 70% clover and 30% grass. This preference has a diurnal pattern, with a stronger preference for clover in the morning, and the proportion of grass increasing towards the evening.