I realised that she wasn’t gaining height like other cows of the same breed,” said Balakrishnan.”She is a special creature. Manikyam is like a family member now. She is very important and responds when you call her name.” Balakrishnan and his family contacted Guinness World Records when a veterinary surgeon told them that the cow was unusually short despite having no deformities.Manikyam was declared the world’s shortest cow last year – smashing the previous record of 69.07 centimetres – and a five-member Guinness World Record team visited the village to verify the record.Balakrishnan said: “I got this cow five years ago. It was right then that I felt it’s uniqueness. I reared it with special care.”But it was only two year back that I realised it was the world’s smallest cow.”Measuring only 61.5 centimetres from the hoof to the withers, six-year-old Manikyam lives in Atholi in the south Indian state of Kerala with her owner, farmer and environmentalist NV Balakrishnan.Balakrishnan obtained the cow as a new-born calf, and despite feeding her and raising her exactly like the other cows on his farm, her growth stalled at just over two feet.”She looked different from the others.
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