Dzo Explained

A dzo (also spelled zo, zho and dzho, Tibetan: མཛོ་|mdzo) is a hybrid between the yak and domestic cattle. The word dzo technically refers to a male hybrid, while a female is known as a or . In Mongolian, it is called a (хайнаг). There is also the English language portmanteau term of yattle, a combination of the words yak and cattle,^[1] as well as yakow,^{[2] [3]} a combination of the words yak and cow.

Dzomo are fertile (or, fecund) while dzo are sterile. As they are a product of the hybrid genetic phenomenon of heterosis (hybrid vigor), they are larger and stronger than yak or cattle from the region.^[4] In Mongolia and Tibet, khainags are thought to be more productive than cattle or yaks in terms of both milk and meat production.^{[5] [6]}

Dzomo can be back crossed. As a result, many supposedly pure yak or pure cattle probably carry each other's genetic material. In Mongolia, the result of a crossed with either a domestic bull or yak bull is called (ортоом, three-quarter-bred) and an crossed with a domestic bull or yak bull results in a (усан гүзээ, one-eighth-bred).^{[6] [7]}

Dzos inherit two distinct protein types, one from each parent, leading to alterations in their mitochondrial structure and function.^[8] Consequently, this adaptation significantly enhances the dzo's capacity to thrive at higher altitudes compared to either parent.

See also

• Bovid hybrid
• Yakalo, a yak/buffalo (American bison) hybrid

External links

• • dictionary.com

Notes and References

1. News: Yattle What? . Mummolo . Jonathan . August 11, 2007 . . January 3, 2017 . Mentzer, who grew up farming in Loudoun County, and his partner, Jim Dumbrell, a retired British oil and gas pipeline consultant, are breeding yattle -- a cross between cows and yaks..
2. Book: National Research Council . National Research Council (United States) . 1983 . Little-Known Asian Animals With a Promising Economic Future . Washington, D.C. . The National Academies Press . 34 . 10.17226/19514 . 978-0-309-32715-2 .
3. Book: Mason, Ian . Porter . Valerie . March 2002 . Mason's World Dictionary of Livestock Breeds, Types and Varieties . West Sussex . . 122 . 085199430X . 2017-01-03 . 2017-12-23 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171223215801/https://www.cabi.org/bookshop/book/9780851994307 . dead .
4. Book: David B. Madsen. Fa-Hu Chen. Chen Fahu. Xing Gao. Late Quaternary Climate Change and Human Adaptation in Arid China. 3 July 2007. Elsevier. 978-0-444-52962-6. 207.
5. Web site: Bataagiin Bynie: Mongolia: The Country Refort (sic!) On Animal Genetic Resources, Ulaanbaatar 2002, p. 11 . 2008-04-28 . 2015-09-24 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150924011424/http://www.fao.org/AG/AGAInfo/programmes/en/genetics/documents/Interlaken/countryreports/Mongolia.pdf . dead .
6. Book: Tsering, Diki . Dalai Lama, My Son . 2002 . Penguin Books . 0-7865-2260-7.
7. Takase Hisabumi, Kh. Tumennasan et al., "Fertility Investigation in F1 Hybrid and Backcross Progeny of Cattle (Bos taurus) and Yak (Bos gruniens) in Mongolia: II. Little variation in gene products studied in male sterile and fertile animals", in: Niigata journal of health and welfare Vol. 2, No. 1, pp. 42–52.
8. Long, L., Zhu, Y., Li, Z., Zhang, H., Liu, L., & Bai, J. (2020). Differential expression of skeletal muscle mitochondrial proteins in yak, dzo, and cattle: a proteomics-based study. The Journal of veterinary medical science, 82(8), 1178–1186. https://doi.org/10.1292/jvms.19-0218