This paper summarizes and interprets zooarchaeological evidence for cattle and pig domestication in Neolithic Central Anatolia. Biometric and demographic data indicate that domestic cattle first appear in the region in the late seventh millennium cal BC while domestic pigs are not evident until the mid fifth millennium. This places the origins of cattle and pig husbandry in Central Anatolia considerably later than in neighboring regions. Reasons for this delay in the spread of productive animal husbandry practices are explored. ► Cattle and pig management were adopted late in Central Anatolia (Turkey). ► Domestic cattle appear in the late seventh millennium cal BC. ► Domestic pigs appear in the mid fifth millennium cal BC. ► Cattle and pig management were actively rejected for millennia.