Animal Husbandry

I

Introduction

Animal Husbandry, the breeding, feeding, and management of animals for the production of food, fibre, work, and pleasure. Modern methods concentrate on one type of animal in large, efficient farming units that generate animal products at the highest rate of return for investment. Intensive husbandry conditions include large numbers of animals in small pens or cages, enriched feed, growth stimulation by various means, and vaccination against disease. Most of the world's domestic animals, however, are raised in small units under less efficient conditions and at lower rates of return.

Animals furnish about 28 per cent of the world's total value of agricultural products. They supply a much higher proportion of human food in the developed countries than elsewhere.

Traditional husbandry practices are closely associated with the degree of control needed over the animals that are kept and with the uses to which they are put. Most domesticated animals have multiple uses; for example, animals kept primarily for work also supply milk, meat, and clothing materials. The animals and their uses, however, are closely associated with the culture and experience of the people who care for them (see Agriculture). In some regions of the world, cattle are not used in the production of food. Studies have shown that the work power, fertilizer, milk, and the fuel from dung that the cattle provide in these regions are more efficient animal products than meat. Analysis of other cultural practices has often revealed that animals are put to unexpectedly efficient use according to local circumstances.

Environmental influences such as climate also play an important role in the domestication and use of animals. Water buffaloes are used as draught animals in southern Asia, where they have adapted to the high temperatures and humidity, whereas horses, which thrive in moderate climates, were the principal draught animals in the temperate regions until they were replaced by tractors. Cattle from India that are acclimatized to hot and humid conditions are prevalent in the southern United States because they are better adapted to the climate of the region than are European cattle.

II

Draught Animals

Domesticated animals used primarily for work, transport, and leisure are widely distributed. They include the horse, mule, donkey (or ass), ox, buffalo, camel, llama, alpaca, yak, reindeer, and dog.

Modern horses are thought to have descended from one or more of three subspecies, including the tarpan, Przhevalski's horse, and the European forest horse. They are still used for draught, that is for pulling heavy loads, in many countries of the world. They are also used for controlling other types of animals, for carrying packs, and for riding for leisure and sport. The world population of horses is estimated at more than 60 million; approximately half are in North and South America and half in Asia and Europe. The 12 million or so mules in the world are fairly evenly divided among Africa, North and Central America, and South America. Of the 40 million or more donkeys, about half are in Asia and a quarter in Africa.

Camels, llamas, and alpacas are used as beasts of burden. Of the 17 million or so camels in the world, approximately three-quarters are found in Africa and the rest in Asia. The llama and alpaca are mostly limited to small areas in South America. Practically all water buffaloes are found in Asia, and are used primarily as draught animals, although they have potential for the production of milk and meat. Oxen are also important draught animals in Asia and in some parts of south-eastern Europe. Dogs are used as pack animals in Alaska and Siberia and are also used to control sheep and other animal herds.

III

Sheep and Goats

Sheep are used for wool, meat (mutton and lamb), and to a small extent for milk. They are commonly divided into three types based on whether their wool is fine, medium, or coarse. Perhaps the first animals to be used in husbandry, they were domesticated in south-western Asia about 11,000 years ago, and approximately a billion are now widely distributed throughout the world, with the largest populations in Africa, South America, Asia, Europe, and Oceania. Commercial sheep farming is usually conducted on large tracts of land, divided into operational units containing 1,000 or more animals per unit. Sheep are also raised as a secondary enterprise on many small farms. They are well adapted to semi-arid regions and to land that is too steep or rough for the cultivation of crops.

Goats were first domesticated in the same region as sheep, and for the same uses, but 1,500 or so years later. They are about two-fifths as numerous as sheep and show a similar distribution pattern.

IV

Pigs

Recent evidence suggests that pigs were domesticated about 9,000 years ago in several world regions simultaneously. Worldwide, there are now estimated to be more than 700 million. Approximately half are raised in Asia, primarily in China, Europe, Russia, and South America also have large numbers. Unlike most domestic animals, pigs are omnivorous and compete directly with humans for many foods.