Waterbuffalo "Carabao" ride in Philippines
The farmer steers his carabao drawn carriage
The water buffalo, or "Carabao," is the national animal of the Philippines. Waterbuffalo is very widespread as a
domestic animal in Philippines.
The carabao is the national animal of the Philippines being around the Filipino lives for many
years helping many poor farmers in their way of life and for survival often ending up selling
his carabao for cash in times of hardship. Aside from farming, a carabao is a nutritious source
of milk and meat just like any cattle. During the pre-colonial period, the dried skin hide of the
carabao were used for armours. The carabao horns are also used in furniture, as a home
accessory, décor and in fashion jewelry.
Carabao are the traditional beast of burden in the Philippines and are still used in the province to
pull a sled made of tree branches to transport heavy loads over rough ground.
Beast of Burden
So with farm lands of rice plantation or any crop, the beast of burden is the main star.
Big and gray, this draught animal is strong, disciplined, patient, quiet, obedient, and ever
supportive to his equivalent hard-working master; the carabao does the major farming of
toiling dry sun-cast soil hardened and cracked in chunks that it is hard to walk barefoot
on them. This domesticated animal plays important and useful roles in Philippine agriculture.
In a day out on the field, the farmer is right behind it to control and guide the carabao in
ploughing a straight path pounding in on a demanding toil for long hours as early as the sun
rises to the time the sun goes down.
The Carabao festival
The carabao or water buffalo is one of the decorated beasts in festivals just like its
horned cousins from other parts of the world such as the Buffalo Body Painting Traditional
Festival participated by China-Vietnam-Cambodia, the decorated Bangalore Bull, the
decorated Brahman Bull as a sacred animal in India to name a few.
Carabao with Sled
A Filipino farmer plowing his rice field. with a carabao (water buffalo)
Carabaos are highly associated with farmers, being the farm animal of choice for pulling the plow and
the cart used to haul farm produce to the market.