Animal husbandry
The first wild animal to be domesticated was the dog, perhaps starting with young individuals tolerated as scavengers and killers of vermin. These half-wild dogs were naturally pack hunters, predisposed to become part of the human pack and join in the hunt. Prey animals like sheep, goats, pigs, and cattle were progressively domesticated early in the history of agriculture. Pigs were domesticated in the Near East between 8,500 and 8000 BC. Sheep and goats appeared in or near the Fertile Crescent about 8,500 BC. Cattle from wild aurochs emerged in areas of modern Turkey and Pakistan around 8,500 BC. A cow provided a great advantage to a villager by producing more milk than her calf needed. Her strength could be put to use as a working animal, pulling a plough to increase crop production. Draught animals were first used about 4,000 BC in the Middle East, increasing agricultural production immeasurably. In southern Asia, the elephant was domesticated by 6,000 BC. Fossilised chicken bones dated to 5040 BC have been found in northeastern China. Archaeologists believe that the original purpose of domestication for chickens was for the sport of cockfighting. In South America, the llama and the alpaca had been domesticated, probably before 3,000 BC, as beasts of burden and for their wool.
Selective breeding for desired traits was established as a scientific practice by Robert Bakewell during the British Agricultural Revolution in the 18th century. One of his most important breeding programs was with sheep. Using native stock, he was able to quickly select for large, yet fine-boned sheep, with long, lustrous wool. The Lincoln Longwool was improved by Bakewell and in turn the Lincoln was used to develop the subsequent breed, named the New or Dishley Leicester. It was hornless and had a square, meaty body with straight top lines. These sheep were exported widely and have contributed to numerous modern breeds. Under his influence, English farmers began to breed cattle for use primarily as beef. Long-horned heifers were crossed with the Westmoreland bull to create the Dishley Longhorn. In 2007, a typical broiler chicken at eight weeks old was 4.8 times as heavy as a bird of similar age in 1957. In the thirty years to 2007, the average milk yield of a dairy cow in the United States nearly doubled. Artificial insemination is widely available to allow farmers to select for particular traits that suit their circumstances.
In the more developed parts of the world, animals are often intensively managed. Dairy cows may be kept in zero-grazing conditions with all their forage brought to them. Beef cattle may be kept in high density feedlots. Pigs may be housed in climate-controlled buildings and never go outdoors. Poultry may be reared in barns and kept in cages as laying birds under lighting-controlled conditions. The battery cages are arranged in long rows in multiple tiers, with external feeders, drinkers, and egg collection facilities. This is the most labour saving and economical method of egg production but has been criticised on animal welfare grounds. Chickens raised indoors are known as broilers, and genetic improvements have meant that they can be grown to slaughter weight within six or seven weeks of hatching. At the other extreme, extensively reared animals may subsist entirely on forage. Ranching systems have been used for sheep, deer, ostrich, emu, llama and alpaca. In rural locations, pigs and poultry can obtain much of their nutrition from scavenging. In African communities, hens may live for months without being fed, and still produce one or two eggs a week.
Animal husbandry drives climate change, ocean acidification, and biodiversity loss, and kills 60 billion animals annually. It uses between 20 and 33% of the world's fresh water. Livestock, and the production of feed for them, occupy about a third of the Earth's ice-free land. Some 70% of the agricultural land and 30% of Earth's land surface is involved directly or indirectly in animal husbandry. Habitat is destroyed by clearing forests and converting land to grow feed crops and for grazing. Animal husbandry causes up to 91% of the deforestation in the Amazon region. Cows produce some 570 million cubic metres of methane per day, that accounts for 35 to 40% of the overall methane emissions of the planet. Further, livestock production is responsible for 65% of all human-related emissions of nitrous oxide. Since 1950, meat production has tripled, whereas the production of dairy products doubled and that of eggs almost increased fourfold. Meanwhile, meat consumption has nearly doubled worldwide. Developing countries had a surge in meat consumption, particularly of monogastric livestock.
When animals become sick, they are treated with veterinary medicines, by the farmer and the veterinarian. In the European Union, when farmers treat their own animals, they are required to follow the guidelines for treatment and to record the treatments given. Animals are susceptible to diseases like classical swine fever and scrapie which are specific to one type of stock. Others, like foot-and-mouth disease affect all cloven-hoofed animals. Increasing numbers of sea lice are affecting farmed salmon in Scotland. Vaccines are available against certain diseases, and antibiotics are widely used where appropriate. At one time, antibiotics were routinely added to certain compound foodstuffs to promote growth, but this practice is now frowned on in many countries because of the risk that it may lead to antimicrobial resistance in livestock and in humans. An outbreak of Nipah virus in Malaysia in 1999 was traced back to pigs becoming ill after contact with fruit-eating flying foxes. The pigs in turn passed the infection to humans. Avian flu H5N1 is present in wild bird populations and can be carried large distances by migrating birds. A strain of E. coli infected 93 people who had visited a British interactive farm in an outbreak in 2009.
Widely agreed types of livestock include cattle for beef and dairy, sheep, goats, pigs, and poultry. Various other species are sometimes considered livestock, such as horses. In some parts of the world, livestock includes species such as buffalo, and the South American camelids, the alpaca and llama. Some authorities use much broader definitions to include fish in aquaculture, micro-livestock such as rabbits and rodents like guinea pigs, as well as insects from honey bees to crickets raised for human consumption. Bees have been kept in hives since at least the First Dynasty of Egypt, five thousand years ago. Sericulture, the rearing of silkworms, was first adopted by the Chinese during the Shang dynasty. In Thailand, crickets are farmed for this purpose in the north of the country, and palm weevil larvae in the south. Ducks are particularly popular in Asia and Australia and can be killed at seven weeks under commercial conditions. Fish hatcheries provide larval and juvenile fish, crustaceans and shellfish, for use in aquaculture systems. Important aspects of husbandry at these early stages include selection of breeding stock, control of water quality and nutrition.
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Common questions
When was the dog first domesticated as a wild animal?
The dog is recognized as the first wild animal to be domesticated, with the process beginning when young individuals were tolerated as scavengers and killers of vermin. These half-wild dogs naturally functioned as pack hunters predisposed to join human packs.
Where and when were pigs sheep goats and cattle domesticated?
Pigs were domesticated in the Near East between 8500 BC and 8000 BC while sheep and goats appeared near the Fertile Crescent about 8500 BC. Cattle from wild aurochs emerged in areas of modern Turkey and Pakistan around 8500 BC.
Who established selective breeding for desired traits during the British Agricultural Revolution?
Robert Bakewell established selective breeding for desired traits as a scientific practice during the British Agricultural Revolution in the 18th century. He developed breeds such as the Lincoln Longwool and the New or Dishley Leicester through careful selection of native stock.
How does animal husbandry impact global climate change and land use?
Animal husbandry drives climate change ocean acidification and biodiversity loss by occupying about a third of Earth's ice-free land. Livestock production is responsible for 65% of all human-related emissions of nitrous oxide and accounts for up to 91% of deforestation in the Amazon region.
What diseases affect livestock and how are they managed today?
Animals are susceptible to specific diseases like classical swine fever scrapie foot-and-mouth disease and sea lice affecting farmed salmon in Scotland. Vaccines are available against certain diseases while antibiotics are widely used where appropriate though routine addition to foodstuffs is now frowned on due to antimicrobial resistance risks.