Domesticated reindeer

The domestic reindeer currently has a population in Norway of about 1.2 million. It has historically played a huge role as a game-hunting animal, a source of food and an alternative choice to pull ploughs when horses were unavailable. Domestic reindeer — which are technically only semi-domesticated, as they will still run wild if given the chance — are one of the most common sources of meat in Norway, particularly in the north, where the Sami people reside, and where domestic cattle are rarer because they cannot survive the cold winters as well as reindeer can. In the south, reindeer meat is eaten often as a traditional Sunday meal or during seasonal events.