This is the Poonganoor cow whose milk is used for ‘ksheera abhishekam’ in Thirupathi for Venkateswara swami every Friday for the past 1000+ years.
The Punganur breed’s milk has a high-fat content and is rich in medicinal properties. While cow milk normally has a fat content of 3 to 3.5 percent, the Punganur breed’s milk contains 8 percent.
As per Wikipedia, the Punganur is on the verge of extinction, with some 60 odd animals remaining. This decline is mainly due to the Indian Government’s objective of ‘bettering’ Indian cattle breeds with Holstein-Friesian and Jersey cattle traits from developed countries and banning the rearing of native bull breeds. The remaining Punganur cattle are being reared mainly on the Livestock Research Station, Palamaner, Chittoor district, attached to SV Veterinary University. A small informal group of private breeders are also working on reviving the breed.
It is not officially recognized as a breed since there are only a few animals remaining.