Nilgai are antelope from the India subcontinent. The females have light to dark brown colored coats with white colored hair on their bib and belly. Females grow to 200-300 pounds. The males are a striking steel gray roan with impressive shoulders and very effective horns. Males will grow to 400- 600 pounds.
We raised two females for several years when we were making the transition from dairy stock to llamas. Our interest was based on the fact that all dairy and many beef cattle breeds in the world today are descended from nilgai. Nilgai are not domestic animals, they are wild animals.
We found our Nilgai the best teachers of the difference between wild/tame and domestic. We purchased our two females as weaned youngsters - about six months old. They settled right into our farm and they were very responsive training. They were also very species tolerant.
The difference between wild/tame and domestic could be seen when ever any people other than ourselves were on the farm. The two nilgai always went into immediate flight response and would have been long gone if not for the substantial height of their fence. It was like day and night in terms of their behavior.
When they reached three years old, it was time to breed them. In looking for a sire, we found a nice home that had several hundred acres of open pasture, a herd of perhaps ten other female nilgai and a nice male. They went off to a better situation because they became part of a herd and we learned that wild/tame animals should be kept by folks that can provide a habitat most similar to the environment that has provided selection for their instinct and behavior. Domestic animals, like llamas, have had their instinct and behavior altered by selective breeding and they are much more tolerant of people and changes to their environment.
Our nilgai:
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