THE KYLOE, OR HIGHLAND OX.
Bos Taurus.
The Chillingham Cattle are white, and the Highland Cattle or Kyloes are generally black; but with this exception the same description might almost serve for both breeds.
In their natural and unimproved state, the Highland cattle are frequently well formed; their fine eyes, acute face, and lively countenances, give them an air of fierceness, which is heightened by their white, tapering, black-tipped, and sharp horns.
The Kyloe Oxen are very small (another respect in which they resemble the Chillingham Oxen). They likewise partake much of the nature of wild animals, which might be expected from the almost unlimited extent of their pasture, and their being but little subject to artificial treatment.
Upon a close comparison of these two breeds, there appears not to be so much difference between the Highland cattle and the cattle of Chillingham as there is between any two breeds or varieties of British cattle. Indeed so great is the similarity, that the Kyloe appears to be only a black variety of the Chillingham Ox, and the Chillingham Ox only a white variety of the Kyloe.
Dr. Anderson speaks of having seen a kind of Highland cattle which had a mane on the top of the head, of considerable length, and a tuft between the horns that nearly covered the eyes, giving them a fierce and savage aspect. He likewise mentions another kind which have hair of a pale lead colour, very beautiful in its appearance, and in its quality as glossy and soft as silk.
The Kyloe Oxen are natives of the Western Highlands and Isles, and are commonly called the Argyleshire breed, or the breed of the Isle of Skie, one of the islands attached to the county of Argyle. They are generally of a dark brown colour, or black, though sometimes brindled.
The Cows of the Isle of Skie (as is recorded by Martin, in his 'Description of the Western Islands of Scotland,') are exposed to the rigour of the coldest seasons, and become mere skeletons in the spring, many of them not being able to rise from the ground without help; but they recover as the season becomes more favorable, and the grass grows up; then they acquire new beef, which is both sweet and tender; the fat and lean is not so much separated in them as in other cows, but as it were larded, which renders it very agreeable to the taste. A cow in this isle may be twelve years old, when at the same time its beef is not above four, five, or six months old.