align="center">They're not llamas, they're not camels, they're not large hairy goats...they're yaks!

What are yaks?

Yaks are the coolest cattle on the planet!

*** You have reached the largest, most comprehensive, inclusive, and informative yak site on the web! Featuring River Satsop.***
This site is referenced by National Geographic.

"It stood about three and a half feet high, and was very hairy and powerful. Its belly reached within six inches of the ground, and its bushy tail swept the earth behind it; the long hair streaming down from its dewlap and forelegs gave it the appearance of a huge Newfoundland dog. Only the horns belied this impression! It was harnessed with a light saddle with horn stirrups, and its bridle was a cord through the cartilage of its nose."

Described by De Filippi, Himalaya Karakorum and Eastern Turkestan.

 

 

The Domestic Yak

Bos grunniens

 

Size: males ~1200 lbs.; females ~800 lbs.

Lifespan: 20-25 years.

Gestation: 8.5 - 9 months. Females begin breeding at 18-24 months. Males can breed at 3 years old, but are not mature until 6-8 years old.

Yaks eat grasses, shrubs, herbs, lichens, leaves, twigs, grain, and of course, hay. On the Tibetan Plateau, food is scarce, so yaks must travel great distances to obtain their required nourishment. Yaks are, however, extremely efficient energy converters.

Yaks do not "moo" like a cow, instead they grunt, which sounds very much like a pig. The species name for the domestic yak is grunniens which means 'grunting', hence their nickname is "the grunting ox". If a yak feels threatened, he will stand with his side to the threat so as to show the fullness of his massive body, then he will grunt repeatedly causing his body to heave up and down. The sound is like a saw cutting wood.

The closest relatives to the yak are bison and musk oxen.

 


yak (River Satsop)

bison

musk ox


Domestic yaks are found throughout the world, predominantly in central Asia (China, Mongolia, Nepal, India, Bhutan) where the population is about 14 million. About 4 million yaks live in Tibet alone, accounting for 30% of China's total yak population. In the United States and Canada there are less than 2000 yaks, including yak hybrids, which are privately owned or in zoos. The origin of yaks in North America was not well documented. In 1909 six yaks were sent to Canada as a gift from The Duke of Bed ford in England. Although improbable, it is possible that the entire yak population in North America could be derived from this single documented importation.

Yaks are no longer imported to the United States from their native lands.

 

The Grunting Ox

I have a yak.
His name is River,
River Satsop.
And he is black,
As black as blacktop.

Before today,
A while back,
I had not a yak.
While buying hay one day
I saw in a field behind a barn,
A herd of beasts like non on a farm.

What were they I asked, the man with the hay.
Why those are yaks.
From here they look like black & white dots.
But what's a yak?
Well, it's a grunting ox!
Have a look, see for yourself.

There must have been one hundred of them.
Each started with horns and then a hump,
A whole lot of wool, and ended with a rump!
Black ones, trim ones, and black and white royals.
These are definitely not your ordinary cows!
Could this be the Tibetan Plateau on one of those documentary shows?

I walked amoung them avoiding the mounds,
And then it happened, I slipped and fell down.
I was covered with poop from my head to my feet,
Gosh Dr. Rustebakke, your poems are sweet!

I raised myself and the sounds permeated the air.
It was the lowly grunts of the yaks, I watched as they stared.
They thought this was funny, my stumble in their heap.
The bunch of overweight wildebeests!
Those mutant goats!
Those refined wooly mamoths!
Those wanna-be buffalos!
Where the heck's their manners?
Of all the names I could call them right now,
The grunting ox just fits somehow!

Tracy Paine
2000


smiling River

 

 

Continued Yak Pages


Were endangered, now are vulnerable.


How can yaks live at such high altitudes?


Recognized U.S. patterns and native variations.


What happens when you cross a yak with a cow?


Nepal sherpa yak terminology.


What yaks are used for around the world.


Why have a yak around? Why not?
Big, beautiful pictures of River and his pals. Slideshow lasts 3½ minutes.

 



Linoleum cut by Tracy Paine

 

*All yaks in the collage at top of this page, with the exception of the piebald hybrid yaks, are pictures of River Satsop taken at various times and places.
River Satsop was named after the Satsop River where he was born. This river flows through the town of Satsop, Washington and then joins the Chehalis River which drains into Grays Harbor.

young River Satsop