| Dzo | |
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| A dzo acting as a pack animal en route to Mount Everest | |
Domesticated | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Artiodactyla |
| Family: | Bovidae |
| Subfamily: | Bovinae |
| Tribe: | Bovini |
| Genus: | Bos |
| Species: | |
Adzo (also spelled zo, zho and dzho, Standard Tibetan: མཛོ་, romanized: 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 dzomoorzhom. In Mongolian, it is called a khainag (хайнаг). There is also the English language portmanteau termofyattle, 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 khainag crossed with either a domestic bull or yak bull is called ortoom (ортоом, three-quarter-bred) and an ortoom crossed with a domestic bull or yak bull results in a usan güzee (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.
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.
Media related to Dzo at Wikimedia Commons
The dictionary definition of dzo at Wiktionary|
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| Bovidae |
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| Camelidae |
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| Canidae |
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| Cetacea |
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| Elephantidae |
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| Equus |
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| Felidae |
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| Hominidae |
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| Macropodinae |
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| Sus |
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| Mustela |
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| Ursus |
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