The snow leopard is a powerful hunter, able to kill prey three times its weight.  The snow leopard's diet varies across its range, but the cat most commonly hunts wild sheep and goats.  The two most important large prey species are the blue sheep, or bharal (Pseudois nayaur), of the Himalayas and Tibet, and the Asiatic ibex (Capra ibex), a wild goat found throughout the major mountain ranges of central Asia.


Snow leopards eat slowly, usually taking 3 or 4 days to consume a sheep or goat.  During that time, the cat remains near the kill to protect it from scavengers such as vultures and ravens, eating every few hours until the carcass is clean.  Snow leopards kill a large animal twice monthly on average.

Snow leopards also eat smaller animals, especially in the summer months.  Small prey include marmots, pikas, hares, other small rodents, and game birds like the Tibetan snowcock and chukor partridge.

In some areas, snow leopards also consume notable amounts of plant material, particularly during the mating season.  The cats may do this to obtain specific nutrients that they need at that time of year.

Snow leopards are opportunistic predators and will take livestock (such as sheep, goats, horses, or young yaks) when domestic animals encroach into their range or when their natural prey becomes unavailable due to competition with livestock, hunting and poaching, or other causes.  In some areas, snow leopards have been known to enter into corrals and kill many sheep and goats at once.  Predation on domestic livestock may increase in winter, when the snow leopard's natural prey are less available and hunting is difficult because of deep snow.