Murboden Cattle are bred primarily in Carinthia

Carinthia (state)

Carinthia is the southernmost Austrian state or Land. Situated within the Eastern Alps it is chiefly noted for its mountains and lakes.The main language is German. Its regional dialects belong to the Southern Austro-Bavarian group...

, Styria

Styria (state)

Styria is a state or Bundesland, located in the southeast of Austria. In area it is the second largest of the nine Austrian federated states, covering 16,401 km². It borders Slovenia as well as the other Austrian states of Upper Austria, Lower Austria, Salzburg, Burgenland, and Carinthia. ...

 and Lower Austria

Lower Austria

Lower Austria is the northeasternmost state of the nine states in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria since 1986 is Sankt Pölten, the most recently designated capital town in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria had formerly been Vienna, even though Vienna is not officially part of Lower Austria...

 in Austria

Austria

Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

, and in the bordering Slovenia

Slovenia

Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...

. They are a mountain breed used as beef

Beef

Beef is the culinary name for meat from bovines, especially domestic cattle. Beef can be harvested from cows, bulls, heifers or steers. It is one of the principal meats used in the cuisine of the Middle East , Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Europe and the United States, and is also important in...

 and milk

Milk

Milk is a white liquid produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals before they are able to digest other types of food. Early-lactation milk contains colostrum, which carries the mother's antibodies to the baby and can reduce the risk of many...

 producers, as well as being draught animals. Hair colour varies from yellowish to light red or grey, with deeper red areas around the horns, eyes, and along the nose. In Slovenia the breed is called Pomurska, and some small purebred herds have survived.

The breed is a mix of older local mountain breeds, including Murztal Cattle, living in the Mur Valley, Ennstal Mountain Pieds

Ennstal Mountain Pied Cattle

Ennstal Mountain Pied Cattle are an almost extinct cattle breed from Austria. The name comes from the Ennstal .The small light Ennstal Mountain Pieds originate from Bavarian Whitehead Pied Cattle. Once they were almost totally foxy red before the white spots in their fur increased...

 and Carinthian Blondvieh

Carinthian Blondvieh

The Carinthian Blondvieh is an old cattle breed that is native to Carinthia in Austria.- Characteristics :The Carinthian Blondvieh is typically uniformly white or pale yellow, with a pale mouth, horns, and hooves. Cows weigh to , bulls to . The Blondvieh was once a draft animal as well as a...

. Breeding for a uniform type began in the early 19th century and a herdbook was established in 1869.

Cows stand 130 to 140 cm and weigh from 700 to 800 kg; bulls are 140 and 150 cm and weigh 1,200 kg.

After World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

the population decreased greatly and there was crossing with other breeds. Only at the beginning of the 1980s were Murboden cattle increasingly bred again, with the Austrian government running a conservation program.