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ANIMAL BREEDING

by

SusanthAlapati XII, Roll No. 47 NalandaVidyaNiketan

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Certificate

Acknowledgement

Introduction

Animal Breeding Methods

Inbreeding

Outbreeding

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Mutations

22

Bibliography

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NALANDA VIDYA NIKETAN

CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that the Biology Project report entitled ANIMAL BREEDING , prepared by Master Susanth Alapati of class XII with Roll No. 47, studying in Nalanda Vidya Niketan [2013-14] has been satisfactorily completed strictly as per the rules and regulations of Central Board of Secondary Education and is thus suitable for presentation for partial fulfilment of the class XII Science Practicals. Dt.:

(Biology Teacher)

External Examiner

Acknowledgement
I am overwhelmed in all humbleness and gratefulness to acknowledge my deep sense of gratitude to all those who have helped me to put these ideas, well above the level of simplicity and into something concrete. I would like to express my special thanks to my teacher Ms.manjula madam as well as our principal Susanth Das sir who gave me the opportunity to do this wonderful project on the topic "Animal Breeding", which also helped me in doing a lot of study during which i came to know about many new things. I am really thankful to them. Any attempt at any level can 't be satisfactorily completed without the support and guidance of my parents and friends. I would like to thank my parents Dr.A.V.N.Tilak and A. Padmaja and my brother A. Prasanth who helped me a lot in gathering different information, collecting data and guiding me from time to time in completing this project, despite their busy schedule. Susanth Alapati XII-A, Roll No. 47

INTRODUCTION
From the very early days human beings depend on animals and animal products for food and other requirements. In dairy and poultry farms high yielding animals are reared. These high yielding animals are produced by hybridisation experiments. Previously the animals were developed based on unscientific methods. Before the discovery of principles of heredity, human beings have selected the animals with required characters and learned to develop the animals having the selected characters. This phenomenon is called Artificial selection. However, an increased knowledge of biology, especially genetics, has helped in improving the quality of animals and animal products as per the human requirements.

ANIMAL BREEDING - PRINCIPLES

The animal breeder faces many complex problems during hybridisation experiments because many traits of animals are dependent on the interaction of multiple genes. When attempts are made only to increase

the size of eggs in fowls, it was observed that the progeny produced yielded few number of eggs or even they die sometimes. That is if only one character is taken for improvement of the animals, the other characters will degenerate or result in harmful effects. Hence at the time of selection all the desirable characters are to be taken into consideration. The techniques for the improvement of animals involve principles of selection based on quantitative variations. It is not possible for all of the desirable traits to be obtained in one individual. The successful product must contain maximum number of desirable traits and a minimum number of undesirable traits.

1. The body form: It is an important factor in selecting racially improved variety of animals. A certain body form in cattle and broilers will be 5

having high market value. They yield delicious mutton if they are having well built body form.
2. Productivity : This is of great significance to the breeder. Some times it

has first priority over other traits. For example the number of eggs, quantity of milk, or wool per animal is an important criterion in any programme of improvement of animals. 3. Quality of the product : In addition to the quantity, the quality of the productivity is also to be taken into consideration during breeding experiments. The cattle which yield low quantity of milk but having high percentage of fat content are more prominent than those which yield high quantity of milk but with low percentage of fat content. Similarly the quality of wool in a sheep is more important than the quantity of wool. 4. Resistance to diseases : The ability of the animal to resist diseases, to withstand adverse environmental conditions are also important in the animals produced by hybridisation experiments.

5. Early maturity : It is another trait that the animal breeders look into for improvement of animals. The earlier the animals mature to the productive age, lesser is the cost of maintaining them. If a hen matures early and begins egg production, it is more valuable than that which matures later. 6. Economy in the use of food : If the amount of food required to produce a certain quantity and quality of animal product is comparatively higher, the commercial value of such an animal is said to be very low. In milk yielding cattle and egg yielding fowls if most of their food material is converted into productivity, such cattle and fowls are considered as more valuable. The above mentioned are only few of the desirable qualities that the animal breeders select for improvement of animals.

Animal Breeding - Methods

The following animal breeding methods are followed for improvement of animals in dairy and poultry, namely,

1. Inbreeding
The crossing of closely related animals is called inbreeding. If this inbreeding is repeated continuously, it is called upgrading. Inbreeding is used to retain desirable genetic traits in animals. Inbreeding is required in order to retain as many traits as possible by keeping the combination of genes intact. However, the inbreeding may result in homozygous recessive genes coming together to express some harmful phenotypic traits. Many breeding scientists have observed that hybrid vigour and fertility were lost due to repeated inbreeding. Such recessive and harmful genes are removed by some special techniques without sacrificing the major quality of the animal. If the race is relatively free of such harmful

recessive genes, the process of inbreeding is a safe method for improvement of animals. Some important examples are:1)Jersey 2)Leghorn Jersey Jersey cattle are a small breed of dairy cattle. Originally bred in the Channel Island of Jersey, the breed is popular for the

high butterfat content of its milk and the lower maintenance costs attending its lower body weight, as well as its genial disposition.

The Jersey cow is quite small, ranging from only 400 500 kilograms (8801,100 lb). The main factor contributing to the popularity of the breed has been their greater economy of production, due to:

the ability to carry a larger number of effective milking cows per unit area due to lower body weight, hence lower maintenance requirements, and superior grazing ability.

calving ease and a relatively lower rate of dystocia, leading to their popularity in crossbreeding with other dairy and even beef breeds to reduce calving related injuries.

high fertility high butterfat conditions, 4.84% butterfat and 3.95% protein, and the ability to thrive on locally produced food. Bulls are also small, ranging from 540 to 820 kg (1200 to 1800 pounds), and are notoriously aggressive.

Castrated males can be trained into fine oxen which, due to their small size and gentle nature make them popular with young teamsters. Jersey

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oxen are not as strong as larger breeds however and are generally out of favour among competitive teamsters. Due to the small size, docile and inquisitive character and attractive features of the Jersey cow, small herds were imported into England by aristocratic land owners as adornment for aesthetically landscaped parks. Jerseys are adaptable to hot climates and are bred in the hottest parts of Brazil. Jerseys come in all shades of brown, from light tan to almost black. They are frequently fawn in colour. All pure bred Jerseys have a lighter band around their muzzle, a dark switch (long hair on the end of the tail), and black hooves, although in recent years colour regulations have been relaxed to allow a broadening of the gene pool. They are calm and docile animals, but tend to be a bit more nervous than other dairy cow breeds. They are also highly recommended cows for first time owners and marginal pasture.

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Unfortunately,

they

have

greater

tendency

towards

post-

parturient hypocalcaemia (or "milk fever") in dams and frail calves that require more attentive management in cold weather than other dairy breeds due to their smaller body mass and greater relative surface area.
Jersey cows in India

Under British rule Jerseys were transported to India and cross bred with Asian breeds to improve the quality of milk produced by domestic breeds - the practice of importing pure bred Jerseys for cross-breeding continues to this day. Leghorn The Leghorn is a breed of chicken originating in Tuscany, in central Italy. Birds were first exported to North America in 1828 from the port city of Livorno, on the western coast of Tuscany. They were initially called "Italians", but by 1865 the breed was known as "Leghorn", the traditional anglicisation of "Livorno". The breed was first introduced to Britain from the United States in 1870. White Leghorns are commonly used as layer chickens in many countries of the world. Other Leghorn 12

varieties are less common. They are mostly white, but sometimes have black dots on them. Sometimes people say that they are the best chickens to look after.

Characteristics : In Italy, where the Livorno breed standard is recent, ten

colour varieties are recognised. There is a separate Italian standard for the German Leghorn variety, the Italiana (German: Italiener).The Fdrationfranaise des volailles (the French poultry federation) divides the breed into four types: the American white, the English white, the old type (golden-salmon) and the modern type, for which seventeen colour variants are listed for full-size birds, and fourteen for bantams; it also recognises an autosexing variety, the Cream Legbar. Both the American Poultry Association and the American Bantam Association (ABA) 13

recognize a number of Leghorn varieties including white, red, blacktailed red, light brown, dark brown, black, blue, buff, Columbian, buff Columbian, barred, exchequer and silver. In Britain, the Leghorn Club recognises eighteen colours: golden duckwing, silver duckwing, partridge, brown, buff, exchequer, Columbian, pyle, white, black, blue, mottled, cuckoo, blue-red, lavender, red, crele and buff Columbian. Most Leghorns have single combs; rose combs are permitted in some countries, but not in Italy. The legs are bright yellow, and the ear-lobes white. The Italian standard gives a weight range of 2.42.7 kg (5.36.0 lb) for cocks, 2.02.3 kg (4.45.1 lb) for hens. According to the British standard, fully grown Leghorn cocks weigh 3.4 kg (7.5 lb), hens 2.5 kg; cockerels weigh 2.72.95 kg and pullets 22.25 kg; for bantams the maximum weight is 1020 g for cocks and 910 g for hens. The eggs are white and weigh a minimum of 55 g. Ring size is 18 mm for cocks, 16 mm for hens.

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2. Outbreeding
The crossing of distantly related animals is called Outbreeding. One of the problems the animal breeder faces in outbreeding is introduction of new genes into population. In this method it is possible to breed a desirable type of animal with a less desirable type and then to increase the degree of desirable traits. New and high yielding genes can be introduced into the population through outbreeding. In many cases these genes may come from a variety of stock. Outbreeding in animals is useful for different purposes viz., i. To produce some variable traits: Beef cattle may be crossed with dairy cattle to produce calves for superior veal (flesh) production. ii. To create new hybrids: A new breed is produced with desired characters from the two original breeds. This process of producing new breeds takes time. The present day breeds of animals have been developed through hybridisation.

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iii. To produce a hybrid of superior Vigour and VaIue: A Mule is produced by crossing Equusequus (male or female horse) and Equushomonius (jack or male ass). Mules are superior to horses in strength, endurance, resistance to disease and ability to work under unfavourable conditions. When a female mule is crossed with a jack, a colt is produced. Some important examples are:1)Black Baldy 2)Mule Black baldy Black Baldy is a type of crossbred beef cattle produced by

crossing Hereford cattle with a solid black breed, usually Aberdeen Angus. Angus bulls are also used on Hereford heifers in an attempt to produce smaller calves and reduce dystocia. The term is particularly used in Australia and New Zealand. In North America, the term "Black Whiteface" is also used in some regions.

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It is characterized by a white face similar to the Hereford, but the red body colour of the Hereford is replaced by black from the Angus. This is because both the alleles for white faces and black coat colour are genetically dominant in cattle.

Black Baldy cows are noted for their good mothering abilities. In addition to general hybrid vigour expected with a crossbred, the cross also produces black skin, which in sunny climates reduces the prevalence of sunburn on bare skin, such as the udder of the cow. The prevalence of Black Baldies significantly increases wherever cattle breeders switch from the traditional Hereford herds to the Aberdeen Angus breed.

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A cross of Hereford cattle on predominantly black-coloured dairy breeds results in a similarly-marked crossbred called the Black Hereford in the British Isles. MULE A mule is the offspring of a male donkey and a female horse. Horses and donkeys are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes. Of the two F1 hybrids between these two species, a mule is easier to obtain than a hinny (the offspring of a male horse and a female donkey). While there is no known instance of a male mule siring offspring, female mules have on very rare occasion given birth to viable offspring. The size of a mule and work to which it is put depends largely on the breeding of the mule's dam. Mules can be lightweight, medium weight, or even, when produced from draught horse mares, of moderately heavy weight. It has been claimed that mules are "more patient, sure-footed, hardy and long-lived than horses, and they are considered less obstinate, faster, and more intelligent than donkeys".

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A female mule that has estrus cycles and thus, in theory, could carry a foetus, is called a "molly" or "Molly mule," though the term is sometimes used to refer to female mules in general. Pregnancy is rare, but can occasionally occur naturally as well as through embryo transfer. One of several terms for a gelded mule is a "John mule".

Characteristics

With its short thick head, long ears, thin limbs, small narrow hooves, and short mane, the mule shares characteristics of a donkey; in height and body, shape of neck and croup, uniformity of coat, and teeth, it appears horse-like; the mule comes in all sizes, shapes and conformities. There are mules that resemble quarter horses, huge draft mules, fineboned racing mules, shaggy pony mules and many more types.

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A mule does not sound exactly like a donkey or a horse. Instead, a mule makes a sound that is similar to a donkey's but also has the whinnying characteristics of a horse (often starts with a whinny, ends in a hee-haw). Sometimes, mules whimper. The coats of mules come in the same varieties as those of horses. Common colours are sorrel, bay, black, and grey. Less common are white, roans (both blue and red), palomino, dun, and buckskin. Least common are paint mules or tobianos. The mule possesses the even temper, patience, endurance and sure-footedness of the donkey, and the vigour, strength and courage of the horse. Operators of working animals generally find mules preferable to horses: mules show more patience under the pressure of heavy weights, and their skin is harder and less sensitive than that of horses, rendering them more capable of resisting sun and rain. Their hooves are harder than horses', and they show a natural resistance to disease and insects. Many North American farmers with clay soil found mules superior as plough animals.

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Mules are generally less tolerant towards dogs than horses are. They are also capable of striking out with any of their hooves in any direction, even sideways if needed. Mules exhibit a higher cognitive intelligence than their parent species. This is believed to be the result of hybrid vigour, similar to how mules acquire greater height and endurance than either parent. Mules are highly intelligent. They tend to be curious by nature. A mule generally will not let the rider put it in harm's way.
Colour and size variety

Mules come in a variety of shapes, sizes and colours, from minis under 50 lb (20 kg) to maxis over 1,000 lb (500 kg), and in many different colours. Mules from Appaloosa mares produce wildly coloured mules, much like their Appaloosa horse relatives, but with even wilder skewed colours. The Appaloosa colour is produced by a complex of genes known as the Leopard complex (Lp). Mares homozygous for the Lpgene bred to any colour donkey will produce an Appaloosa coloured mule.

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Distribution

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) reports that China was the top market for mules in 2003, closely followed by Mexico and many Central and South American nations.

3. Mutations
The new traits into populations can also be induced through mutations. Since most of the mutations are harmful and the process of induction of mutations is quite expensive, this method of improvement of animals is impractical. It has been reported that a sheep in New England mutated in the direction of having shorter legs (a desirable quality) and formed the basis for racial improvement of sheep. Representative examples of improvements in animals by mutations include poultry that is resistant to white diarrhoea, increased egg production in fowls, increased fat content in milk and better meat yielding in Turkeys etc.

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Here are some mutant animals:

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Here are some interesting animal hybrids:

Liger=Male Tiger+Female Lion

Zebroid=Zebra+Horses

Grolar Bears=Gizzly Bear+Polar Bear

Wholpins= Falsekiller whale+bottlenose dholphin

Savannah cat=Domestic Cat +Wild African Cat

Cama=Camel+Llamas

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Beefelo=Buffalo+African Bison

Sheep-Goats=Sheep+Goats

Narwhal-beluga hybrid

Blood Parrots= midas cichlid+redhead cichlid

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Bibliography
http://www.biozoomer.com Wikipedia.org

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