Domestic Yak (Bos grunniens) Yak — Variety Guide

Domestic Yak (Bos grunniens) — one of the yak varieties owners search for by name.

Domestic Yak (Bos grunniens) Yak — photo used in our Yak guide

Domestic Yak (Bos grunniens) is one of the yak varieties people look up by name. This page answers the questions owners actually type about domestic yak (bos grunniens), then points you to the sourced yak care guidance that applies to every variety.

The yak (Bos grunniens) is a long-haired Himalayan bovid kept for milk, meat, fiber and draft, superbly adapted to cold high-altitude rangeland.

Quick answer: Domestic Yak (Bos grunniens) is a variety of yak. Everything on this page is yak-level guidance — we do not invent variety-specific numbers.

The care below is yak-level guidance from our species hub, sourced to International Yak Association (IYAK) — Yak Care and Merck Veterinary Manual — Ruminants. It applies to Domestic Yak (Bos grunniens) exactly as it applies to every other yak variety. We do not publish variety-specific temperament, lifespan or weight numbers that we cannot source.

How long do Yaks live?

Yaks live about 20–25 years in good management, with productive females milking for many of those years and calving first at 3–4 years after a 257–270 day gestation. They are long-lived, so ownership is a multi-decade commitment. Calves are small and hardy but need cold-adapted husbandry from birth; hypothermia is the main neonatal risk in marginal climates.

What do Yaks need?

Yaks thrive on coarse, fibrous forage — native grasses, hay and browse — that would undernourish cattle, and need far less concentrate than temperate breeds. They require cold, dry air (ideal 10 to −40°C; they stress badly above about 15–20°C with humidity) and a mineral mix suited to their needs. Fiber harvesting is part of the deal: the soft down is combed or plucked in spring molts. They need clean water that does not freeze in winter and a yak-aware vet for calving and parasites.

How big do Domestic Yak (Bos grunniens) Yak get?

Mature yaks weigh 250–500 kg (males larger) and live 20–25 years.

This figure is species-level: Domestic Yak (Bos grunniens) is a variety of yak, so we do not publish a separate number for it. Sources and full data on the Yak species profile.

How long do Domestic Yak (Bos grunniens) Yak live?

Mature yaks weigh 250–500 kg (males larger) and live 20–25 years.

This figure is species-level: Domestic Yak (Bos grunniens) is a variety of yak, so we do not publish a separate number for it. Sources and full data on the Yak species profile.

Temperament and handling

In their comfort zone they are remarkably low-input, but any site below their climate tolerance requires active cooling that most smallholders cannot provide.

This figure is species-level: Domestic Yak (Bos grunniens) is a variety of yak, so we do not publish a separate number for it. Sources and full data on the Yak species profile.

What people ask about Domestic Yak (Bos grunniens)