This blog is about cattle, culture, and life’s other adventures.
I am currently a Ph.D. candidate in Geography and the Environment at Oxford University and hold an M.A. in Anthrozoology from Canisius College and an M.A. in Philosophy from Colorado State University. I am also a co-editor of the book Trash Animals: How We Live With Nature’s Filthy, Feral Invasive and Unwanted Creatures (University of Minnesota Press, 2013) and am a Associate Fellow at the Oxford Center for Animal Ethics. In 2012 I received a Culture & Animals Foundation grant to pursue research on the popularity of bull fighting in Spain following the ban in the Spanish province of Catalonia. Currently, I am in the process of conducting research about people’s cultural relationship with cows with the intent to write a book about it. I decided to learn about the lives of cows while studying animal ethics and environmental philosophy at Colorado State University. At that time I lived next to a pasture full of cows and steers and I started to think about their welfare and the welfare of cattle around the world. I also have had several jobs that have involved cows in some way–jobs like waitressing at a Tex Mex restaurant and selling raw-milk cheese at a farmers’ market. Thinking about the welfare of cattle and my relationship to them led me to think about larger cultural and religious belief systems and how they influence the life of a cow from birth to death. In essence, this project is really about people and what we can learn about humankind through the lives of cows. Traveling around asking people questions about cows has also been a fun adventure and a great way to see the world.
Please direct questions to me in a comment here or at kelsi.nagy@ouce.ox.ac.uk
World Cow Girl 
Hi Kelsi Nagy,
I am a journalist working for a Japanese newspaper from India. While doing a story on cows in Indian cities, I found your blog quite interesting and amazed to see your indepth study on cows.
great work indeed. Keep it up!!!
thanks & regards,
chakradhar behera
New Delhi
Hi Kelsi,
Just been pouring over your blog..nice work..i’ve spent a bit of time in India and being a long term vegan was very interested in the way the treat and regard their cows – and the difference between these two things…when i read through some ofy our blog i found something which i found quite pertinent..that cows are regarded as the mother because they give and give and get little in return…i feel that this piece of information is of critical importance in the way mothers are regarded…beautiful photographs..
i am currently working on a group art project called the sacred cows art project…timed for world vegan day which is oct 31st 2010…best wishes with your book and travels perhaps we will meet one day on a street in india? who knows…
Dear Cowgirl,
If you are in India to know more about cow,
I request you to visit Mr Uttam Maheshwari in Mumbai.
He is the best of the knowers about cows.
His father was the best when he was alive.
He also has written books on them which you can find completely original and informative.
Also, there is a Goshala of about 100,000 cows in Pathmeda, Dist. Sangor, Rajasthan
It had ~400,000 cows at on point of time.
I would really appreciate if you can get Gita Press’s two books called Go Ank and Go Seva Ank. Gita Press is in Gorakhpur, India. They have book stalls at major railway stations.
Dear Wellwisher,
Thank you for your note. I apologize for taking so long to respond to your message. I am headed to Mumbai at the end of this month and am writing to see Mr. Uttam Mahashwari to see if he will grant me an interview. I will also look for the books that you recommended. Thank you for your help and well wishes.
All the best,
Kelsi
Hello,kelsi i came to know about you from the week magazine article regarding vechur cows.I just check in your blog was more intersting to more and more i read about your intersest with cows.Its wonderfull,Me a farmers son from kasargod distrit and die hard fan of cattles.Where r u right now?In India?If at mumbai please vist the Gir cow farm at kandiwali.
All the best
purandar
Thank you for your kind comments and for telling me about this article. I have just returned to the States, but I will try to visit the farm you suggested the next time I am in India.
Best Wishes,
Kelsi
did you get interview with him.. where is it published..
ur krishnas gopi
visit barsana/nand gao/vrindavan (all in mathura-uter pradesh)
real plae for cow lovers
Hello Kelsy,
Happy to see an informative blog after a long time. This is all because of your perseverance. You may find my blog useful. This is about cows too. Especially indigenous cattle of the southernmost state of Tamil Nadu. Also has some interesting links at the bottom.
http://tamilnaducattle.blogspot.com/
Thank you for your words of encouragement. I enjoyed looking at your blog with all the lovely photos of your state’s native cattle. Thanks for letting me know about all the links too. All the best.
Hare Krsna,
Please accept my humble obeisances.
First of I all i would like to thank you for studing the relationship between cow and humanity, for that sake the entire creation. In sacred vedic literatures cow is mentioned as one of 7 mothers of living entities. Simply by serving cow with love and devotion one can achieve highest benefit. Not that one will become rich overnight with big stash of cash, a big manson etc but will be blessed with fearlessness, eternity, off course he can be oppulent as well as goddess of fortune resides in cow’s holy divine body.
In your studies you may like to visit ISKCON Vrindavan Goshala, goshala.com, you might have visited earlier but i wanted to share this with you. You can get a deeper insight into the role of mother cow.
I am deciding to create more aware on benefits of cow products and cow protection so for that purpose i need your help. If you have sometime then please do let me know.
Hope this meets you in good health
Regards,
Nitaipremadas
Thank you for your kind and generous encouragement. I would be honored to visit your Goshala in Vrindavan and will make sure to contact you on my next visit to India. I would be happy to help you create awareness about the benefits of cow products and look forward to learning more about them. Best wishes for your work with cows and cow welfare.
Hi Kelsi,
I hadn’t heard of Anthrozoology earlier, read about it and sounds like an interesting course. I am curious – what kind of jobs you get after such course?
Your blog articles are nice and I am reading them one by one. Several initial ones are blank, hope you fill them with text sometime soon. All the best for the book writing. I hope it comes out really well.
About me: I am a Vegan and hence interested in the Indian cows from a compassionate perspective. These days I am trying to go little deeper into the subject and found your blog, definitely planning to go through all articles that you wrote 🙂
If possible kindly add my email address to your list so that I know when you post new ones!
Regards,
Krishna Shastry
Hi Krishna,
Thank you for taking an interest in my blog. I am excited to hear that you are an advocate for cattle in India. The following two articles pertain exclusively to cow welfare. I look forward to hearing your comments about them.
https://worldcowgirl.wordpress.com/2011/06/11/in-india-cows-and-trash-and-what-you-can-do/
https://worldcowgirl.wordpress.com/2010/05/13/impressions-of-india-cow-welfare/
I only found out about the field of Anthrozoology this summer. No I am in the process of getting a Masters degree in it. I am not sure what job opportunities I will have available to me in the future. I may complete a Ph.D. in this field and become a professor. Working for non-profits, directing animal shelters/sanctuaries, and possibly working for film and television organizations that make films about animals are potential options for Anthrozoology students.
I cannot sign you up for updates, you have to do this yourself by clicking on the “subscribe” button on my blog.
Thanks for your comment,
Kelsi
Dear Kelsi,
The India’s native cow breeds has attracted worldwide attention and people from all continents have carried these breeds to their native lands and successfully re-bred them there. Brazilians have raised thousands of cows from the “Ongole” breed Andhra Pradesh and similarly, New Zealanders have redeveloped the Indian “Vechur” breed and Americans and Australians have raised a whole new generation of cows called “Brahman” from an Indian breed.
If you want to know more about Indian breed of cow, I request you to visit Ramachandrapur math in Karnataka, India. It has committed itself to the noble mission of saving, caring and propagating native Indian breeds of cattle. The weblinks of the projects and the encyclopedia of Indian cow are as follows. Hope you will find it interesting.
http://www.srimath.org/Projects/kamadudghaeng.php
The encyclopedia of Indian cow: http://www.vishwagou.org/
Regards,
Sahana
Thank you, Sahana.
I enjoyed learning about the breeds of Indian cattle other countries have developed and thanks also for the encyclopedia of Indian cows. Please be in touch with any other information you think would be useful to me.
I have already visited the cow sanctuary in Karnataka that you recommended. It is where this picture of me was taken. I wrote this blog about it:
https://worldcowgirl.wordpress.com/2011/05/24/in-shimoga-india-meeting-most-of-indias-native-breeds-of-cattle/
Best,
Kelsi
Respected Kelsi Negi
I appreciate very much your noble cause of studying the Indian Cow culture and thank you immensely from the bottom of my heart and encourage you to carry this noble work as long as you are alive so that the mother cow will lead a respectable life by serving the human community.
Hi Kelsi,
I am really fascinated by your efforts. Keep up the good work.
All the best,
-Chandra
Dear Kelsi,
I appreciate your efforts in building such a good blog. I am currently involved in developing sustainable models of rearing of indigenous cattle for improving the rural livelihoods The pilot is coming up in a place called Kenkere in Chikkamagalur Taluk. It would be nice if you visit us.
Best regards
Udayakumar Kollimath
Hi Kelsy,
Great job dear.
It’s nice to see a foreigner taking soooo much of interest in the welfare of holy Indian cows.
I am sure your write-ups will be an eye opener to lots of guys out there.
Congrats and keep up the good work.
Hi Kelsi……
Its wonder full job,,.. after looking your images and your writing I am very Impress you done good job.
All the best ,,,,,,
Hare Krishna,
You can contact to KALPAVRIKSHA Foundation, only NGO helping to Goshalas of India to make them self sustainable by the usage of Cow’s Panchgavya (milk, ghee, yogurt, urine, dung) through their brand DOCTOR COW. Supporting to lot of goshalas and cow lovers to make their carrer in GOSEVA. Visit their website at http://www.kalpavriksha.info and facebook page doctor cow