The Regional Mithun Breeding Farm, Arong, is situated on a pleasant hill at an elevation of 1400. It is 31 km from Samdrup Jongkhar along the Trashigang/Samdrup Jongkhar highway. The vegetation is temperate broad-leaved and is quintessential for mithuns. It established the regional Mithun Breeding Farm in the year 1977. The Mithun (Bos frontalis) is known to be a nocturnal wanderer, reared as high as 3500ft. Its yellow milk with 9.5% fat does not find favor for human consumption.
Mithun locally recognized as Bamey is a domesticated form of Gaur (Bos Gauras) locally known as Rilang. Using mithuns for cross-breeding is very prevalent amongst the cattle owners of Bhutan and dates back as early as the 17th century. Mithun has continued to play a significant role in the spiritual and cultural life of the Bhutanese.
Crossbreeding produces FI hybrids, Jatsha (male) and Jatsham (female). The males are popular for draught power while we use the females for high milk production. The animals are easy to deal with in difficult topography and have an insistent foraging ability. Given the importance and the increasing interest in Mithun bulls, the Royal Government established two Mithun farms during the 6th five-year plan.
We regard the Mithuns as the finest breed of bison in Bhutan, and it will be worthwhile to stop for a while to discover and photograph impressive animals. The Mithuns raised here are supplied to the farmers of the six eastern districts.