There are many people who dream of raising their own food, not only for the satisfaction in doing so but because it can be much healthier. Rather than start with large livestock, chickens are a very good way to ease yourself into raising your own meat. They are less labor intensive than sheep, cattle, or pigs and take much less land to thrive on. Chickens are a good way to introduce yourself to raising your own livestock. They are small and with and poultry is said to be healthier than red meat or pork. Even if you just want fresh eggs, raising chickens can be very rewarding and even entertaining.

Wildlife Conservation in Africa: A Scientific Approach presents comprehensive management strategies for the consumptive and non-consumptive utilization of wildlife across Sub-Saharan Africa. It describes African economies that are currently dependent on wildlife resources and prescribes strategies for conserving biodiversity in both forests and animals in ecosystems across the continent. The book covers the history and current status of how Africa's culture, traditions, healthcare and food sources are woven intricately around the local wildlife and resources. It is a necessary resource for researchers and practitioners in wildlife and ecological conservation, but is also useful for administrators and managers of protected areas.

Temple Grandin, North America's most influential advocate of humane livestock treatment, has spent her life developing stress-free facility designs and standards of humane management. In an environment of growing concern regarding large factory-farming practices, Grandin is a voice of reason explaining the benefits of keeping animals calm through every phase of their lives -- benefits that include safer working conditions, higher yields of marketable meat, better-quality meat, and, of course, more humane conditions for the animals.
The first half of "Humane Livestock Handling" reviews the natural behavior and temperament of cattle. Working with the animals' natural instincts, Grandin describes low-stress methods for moving cattle on pastures, paddocks, and feedlot pens. Slow, controlled movement reduces stress and fear, resulting in calmer, healthier cattle. They eat better, are less likely to become sick, and do not run into fences and gates, injuring themselves and bruising the meat. Calm cattle are also far less likely to injure the humans working with them.
The second half of the book is packed with construction plans, diagrams and detailed designs for putting Grandin's ideas into practice. Featuring plans for everything from gate latches to chutes, corrals, and sorting pens for full-scale facilities, there are designs that can be used in both large and small operations. In fact, half of the cattle in North America are already handled in systems designed by Grandin, and the demand for humanely processed meat continues to grow.
Temple Grandin's systems are quickly becoming the industry-wide standard. No livestock operation, small or large, can afford to ignore "Humane Livestock Handling."

This collection features five peer-reviewed reviews on ensuring the welfare of laying hens. The first chapter highlights the key welfare issues in poultry housing and management, focussing on the use of conventional cages to house laying hens. The chapter then explores the emergence of enriched cages and cage-free housing, as well as the benefits and risks of each system on bird health and welfare. The second chapter reviews the range of welfare issues affecting free range laying hens. The chapter also highlights the need to improve current understanding of how laying hens behave in free range systems to be able to adequately meet their health and welfare needs. The third chapter discusses the use of beak trimming methods, as well as the welfare concerns that arise as a result of their use. The chapter highlights alternative strategies to reduce the need for these practices which are known to incur acute pain. The fourth chapter reviews the impact of housing and management systems on the skeletal and cognitive development of laying hens. It discusses how nutrition and housing can be optimised to reduce the occurrence of bone health issues. The final chapter reviews current research on the genetics of behavioural traits in poultry, focussing on how breeding can be optimised to reduce aggressive behaviour in laying hens.

The most comprehensive beekeeping resource ever published. This ultimate guide covers all the practical essentials and will teach you everything about caring for bees and safe hive management, with clear instructions and step-by-step illustrations. It also contains a wealth of information about the culinary, medicinal, cosmetic and domestic uses of honey, beeswax and pollen. So much more than just a practical handbook, this beautiful almanac is also a fascinating read, overflowing with charming bee trivia, fascinating folklore, an engaging history of beekeeping and much more besides. Discover bees in literature, learn how to craft beeswax candles, preserve fine wood with your own home-made furniture polish, or indulge your skin with lavender and beeswax hand cream. Enjoy over 100 glorious honey recipes for cakes and breads, sauces and marinades, drinks and even flavoured spirits! Fully illustrated with practical photography, stunning illustrations and unique etchings, this is an invaluable handbook as well as a beautiful addition to your coffee table, whether you're an active beekeeper with buzzing hives, or an armchair enthusiast who daydreams about harvesting your own honey. The plight of the honeybee has been widely reported, as numbers fall at an alarming rate. But its vital role in crop pollination and global agricultural means that the survival of the honeybee is essential; if it is to endure into the next century, we must take it seriously now. The Collins Beekeeper's Bible does just that, bestowing readers with all there is to know about bees, in the hope that it will help secure the future of this fascinating insect. CONTENTS INCLUDE o History of honey and beekeeping o Building a beehive & staying safe o Caring for your bees - pests & diseases o Growing flowers for bees o Collecting your honey o Household uses for honey and beeswax o Homeopathic, medicinal and cosmetic uses for honey and pollen o Home crafts o Recipes for home-made food and drinks featuring honey

It is widely recognised that developments in the chick embryo have a profound effect on hatchability and the subsequent health and productive capacity of poultry. With a stronger focus on welfare, prevention of disease and more sustainable poultry production, understanding these early stages has never been more crucial. Embryo development and hatchery practice in poultry production addresses the key stages and factors in embryo development in poultry to optimise hatchability and chick health. The book reviews the role of parental and environmental factors on embryo development and skeletal growth. The book also reviews the effects of incubation on chick health and development, including factors such as temperature, light exposure and humidity, as well as best practice in managing the hatching stage. Through focussed and authoritative discussions, the book details best practices for managing a hatchery environment to ensure that chick welfare, health and productive capacity are optimized.

This is a book about proximate mechanisms. Although some theoreti cal structure is used to introduce the subject, the intent is to offer a comprehensive view of the mechanistic side of searching (or foraging) so as to balance the current emphasis of books on mathematical and functional models. It seems to me that the pendulum needs to swing back to studies of how animals behave, and that maybe in so doing models will become valuable again in driving experimentation. I have probably included too many examples in this book, and some are even presented in great detail. Hopefully, they provide a complete picture of the kind of animals used, the experimental setup, the kinds of data yielded, and how the data were analysed. I have done this in response to frustrating experiences of reading chapters in behavioural ecobgy books that provide insufficient information with which to evaluate an author's conclusion."

Dog Behavior: Modern Science and Our Canine Companions provides readers with a better understanding of canine science, including evolutionary concepts, ethograms, brain structures and development, sensory perspectives, the science of emotions, social structure, and the natural history of the species. The book also analyzes relationships between humans and dogs and how the latter has evolved. Readers will find this to be an ideal resource for researchers and students in animal behavior, specifically focusing on dog behavior and human-canine relationships. In addition, veterinarians seeking further information on dog behavior and the social temperament of these companion animals will find this book to be informative.

Strategies for Successful Animal Shelters is the first book to assess the relationship between shelter traits, activities and critical outcome variables, such as live release or save rates. This book provides a data-based evaluation of shelter processes and practices with explicit recommendations for improved shelter activities. Using a survey of licensed animal shelters, case studies, and data on state inspections, complaints, and save rates, this book provides an assessment of the activities, processes, and procedures that are most likely to lead to positive outcomes for a variety of animal shelters. The book also contributes to community debate around animal sheltering and provides best practices, methods and means to assess local shelters to ensure the highest level of animal welfare. It is a valuable resource for animal shelter professionals and rescue groups, as well as students in disciplines such as animal science, animal welfare and shelter medicine.

This specially curated collection features four reviews of current and key research on African swine fever (ASF). The global spread of ASF has been unprecedented. Since 2005 ASF has spread to over 60 countries across Asia, Africa and Europe. Since it first appeared in China in 2018, it has halved the commercial pig population in that country. Controlling ASP has proved challenging due to its complex epidemiology, difficulties in early detection and the current lack of an effective vaccine. This guide synthesises and reviews the research on key aspects of understanding, tracking and preventing this devastating disease.

This collection features five peer-reviewed reviews on optimising pig nutrition. The first chapter considers advances in nutritional requirements and metabolism and how these contribute to the sustainable production of pig meat, including the need to maintain sow body condition throughout gestation and lactation and ways of reducing variation in pork production systems. The second chapter discusses the essential contribution of balanced energy and protein levels in achieving optimal health in pigs. It includes a case study which illustrates how characteristics of feed form and structure may have contradictory impacts on the gastric health and performance of pigs. The third chapter summarises current knowledge on the effects of prebiotic oligosaccharides on porcine gut function and health, focussing on the effects on gut functions in the early postnatal phase. The fourth chapter addresses recent advances in understanding the role of vitamins in porcine diets. It outlines their importance for some aspects of oxidative mechanisms, including the development and competence of the immune system. The final chapter summarises the nutritional attributes of macroalgae in terms of macro and micronutrients as a source of protein and other compounds in pig nutrition.

Global demand for milk and other dairy products continues to grow. As a result of this increased consumer demand, the sector’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have risen dramatically. It is therefore crucial that the livestock sector reacts to these developments and considers areas for improvement that could reduce the sector’s contribution to climate change. Advances in sustainable dairy cattle nutrition provides a comprehensive review of the wealth of research on recent advances in understanding and improving dairy cattle nutrition to reduce the carbon footprint of the dairy sector. This collection explores the role of nutritional requirements in optimising gut function and overall animal health, as well as its influence on milk yield and quality. Chapters also review the use of dietary supplements, such as plant extracts and direct-fed microbials (DFM) to optimise dairy cattle nutrition.

"You’ll be in awe of the work of the American rancher and wildlife alike." — Fox News "... Krantz delivers a true sense of not only the size and scope of Art and Catherine Nicholas’ Wagonhound Ranch, but also the deep sense of stewardship the Nicholas family and their crew bring to ranching every day." — Western Horseman "...Anouk’s photographs tell a visual story of the rancher and his relationship with the land." — The Eye of Photography "A stunning photographic collection that celebrates the reality of ranch life." — Big Sky Journal Wagonhound is a historic working ranch spanning over 300,000 acres in Wyoming, where the elevation ranges from 5,000 feet to 9,000 feet; where talented, strong, and steady quarter horses supplied by the ranch-owned remuda are required to help the cowboys manage the herds in a spectacularly rugged terrain. Catherine and Art Nicholas, who took the reins of the historic ranch in 1999, take the stewardship of the land very seriously — their vision has been to honour tradition, preserve the land, which is steeped in history, and return it to a pristine condition. In Ranchland: Wagonhound, Anouk Krantz’s beautiful photography reveals the daily and seasonal rhythms of the ranch and the daily lives of its men and women cowboys, whose long hard days — starting in the dark and finishing in the dark — involve everything from cattle driving to branding to training the best quarter horses in the country and more. Set in a stunning large-format book, these photographs and the stories offer an inspiring new perspective into today's cowboy/ranching culture and land stewardship of the American West. 

In 1880, William Herbert Guthrie-Smith (1862-1940) emigrated from Scotland to New Zealand, where he learned the basics of sheep farming and acquired Tutira, a disused sheep station of 20,000 acres in the Hawke's Bay region of the North Island. Tutira, published in 1921, describes every aspect of Guthrie-Smith's enterprise, including the redevelopment of the land and comprehensive advice on sheep farming. The book also covers the history of the local Maori and of European settlement, and provides an extensive account of the farm's natural history including its geological configuration, meteorological patterns, the formation of lakes and waterways, and the native plant and bird species Guthrie-Smith discovered on his land. It also draws attention to the impact of introduced, 'alien' plants and animals. Tutira is one of the great classics of New World environmental consciousness; it was reprinted in 1926, and a posthumous revised edition appeared in 1953.

This collection features four peer-reviewed reviews on the nutritional benefits of milk. The first chapter highlights the important role of milk and dairy products in human diets due to the amount of energy (calories) they provide and their ability to compensate for foods in the diet with lesser nutritional value. The chapter also reviews the dairy matrix concept and how this matrix can influence human physiology. The second chapter provides an overview of major and minor milk proteins, including caseins, whey proteins and indigenous milk enzymes. The chapter discusses a selection of milk protein products which are produced on an industrial scale to support human health and growth, such as the use of whey protein in infant formula and dietary supplements. The third chapter reviews current knowledge on bioactive components existing in cow's milk and colostrum, their biological and nutritional functionalities, as well as how these components can be exploited for the benefit of human health and physiological metabolism function. The final chapter provides an overview of the nutritional properties of dairy carbohydrates and major glycoproteins in cow's milk. The chapter considers the contribution of lactose as a substrate for beneficial colonic fermentation to short-chain fatty acids, as well as the importance of glycoproteins in infant diets.

Advances in Poultry Welfare provides a targeted overview of contemporary developments in poultry welfare. The reviews in the volume address topical issues related to poultry welfare research and assessment, with a focus on identifying practical strategies for improvement as well as information gaps that remain to be filled. Part One provides an introduction to poultry production systems and gives a broad overview of current poultry welfare issues. Part Two moves on to review several aspects of poultry management, focusing on hatchery practices, early rearing, and slaughter. Part Three deals with welfare assessment on the farm, while Part Four explores continuing challenges, such as feather pecking and skeletal problems. This is followed in Part Five by a discussion of emerging issues, with chapters covering alternative parasite control methods, backyard poultry production, mass depopulation, and genetic approaches to reducing the impact of environmental stressors on welfare. This book is an essential part of the wider ranging series Advances in Farm Animal Welfare, with coverage of cattle, sheep, pigs, and poultry. With its expert editor and international team of contributors, Advances in Poultry Welfare is a key reference tool for welfare research scientists and students, veterinarians involved in welfare assessment, and indeed anyone with a professional interest in the welfare of poultry.

Advances in Cattle Welfare provides a targeted overview of contemporary issues in dairy and beef cattle welfare. The volume addresses welfare-related topics in both research and on-farm applications. Opening with an introduction to cattle production systems, the book covers the three major areas of cattle welfare; on-farm welfare assessment, behavioral priorities of cattle and novel perspectives on specific aspects of management. Chapters examine the key issues within each area, including such topics as the goals and measures included in welfare assessments, the importance to cattle of access to pasture and engaging in social behavior, human-animal interactions, painful procedures, and disease and metabolic challenge. This book is an essential part of the wider ranging series Advances in Farm Animal Welfare, with coverage of cattle, sheep and pigs. With its expert editor and international team of contributors, Advances in Cattle Welfare is a key reference tool for welfare research scientists and students, veterinarians involved in welfare assessment, and indeed anyone with a professional interest in the welfare of cattle.

Advances in Pig Welfare analyzes current topical issues in the key areas of pig welfare assessment and improvement. With coverage of both recent developments and reviews of historical welfare issues, the volume provides a comprehensive survey of the field. The book is divided into two sections. Part One opens with an overview of main welfare challenges in commercial pig production systems and then reviews pig welfare hot spots from birth to slaughter. Part Two highlights emerging topics in pig welfare, such as pain and health assessment, early socialization and environmental enrichment, pig-human interactions, breeding for welfare, positive pig welfare and pigs as laboratory animals. This book is an essential part of the wider ranging series Advances in Farm Animal Welfare, with coverage of cattle, sheep, pigs and poultry. With its expert editor and international team of contributors, Advances in Pig Welfare is a key reference tool for welfare research scientists and students, veterinarians involved in welfare assessment, and indeed anyone with a professional interest in the welfare of pig.

This collection features five peer-reviewed reviews on dietary supplements in poultry nutrition. The first chapter reviews latest research on feed enzymes focussing on identifying the key challenges researchers face in terms of current trends in enzyme development, mechanism(s) of action and enzyme efficacy. The second chapter considers the role of probiotics in optimising gut function in poultry. It reviews the development of novel, cost-effective, feed-stable, direct-fed microbials with potential for widespread utilisation and improved production. The third chapter discusses the role of essential oils and botanicals in improving gut function in poultry, focussing on four major functions of phytobiotics that could potentially contribute to gut health: digestive conditioning, antimicrobial property, immunomodulation and gut microbiota modulation. The fourth chapter considers the development of alternative protein sources for poultry nutrition, including grain by-products, pulses and algae. It also reviews best practices for improving the nutritive value of these alternative protein sources. The final chapter reviews the effects of supplemental full- or de-fatted microalgal biomass in poultry diets on animal production and performance, meat and egg qualities, as well as nutrient metabolism and molecular responses.

In the dairy aisle of the supermarket, one milk carton features cows grazing on a verdant pasture, backed by a forest and undulating hillside. On another, a cow's wide-eyed face beckons the thirsty drinker. To the casual shopper, such pastoral images proclaim milk's wholesomeness and natural purity. However, the same labels in the dairy case that flaunt meadow flowers and red barns betray a different history, one of human manipulation of milk between farmstead and supermarket. Words on the carton indicate that milk is "Grade A," "pasteurized," "homogenized," and "vitamin fortified." The cartons carry expiration dates and advise that the product be refrigerated. Such adjectives and directives convey a different reality than the pastoral scenes-that harnessing cows' lactation processes requires an extraordinary amount of human effort. On behalf of pure and plentiful milk, Americans have become as reliant on inspectors to monitor cows for diseases and suppliers to keep milk cool as on idyllic agricultural landscapes. Though often conceived of as a pure product of nature, milk's nature had to be perfected for it to become a healthful human food. Milk is not the only food lauded for its natural origins. Nor is it the only food that reaches the marketplace in an altogether different state from that in which it originated. But no other food has so stolidly symbolized natural purity, while simultaneously undergoing dramatic transformations to its material form. How and why has milk been conceptualized as wholly natural, even as it has been churned into manufactured foods like butter and ice cream, and incorporated into products as artificial as Cheez Whiz and wood glue? What ideas and values drove the modification of milk? How have consumers' changing expectations for milk affected the farm people, cows, and rural landscapes central to milk production? This first book explores these questions, connecting the development of dairy farming to changing practices of buying milk products. It traces the processes of milk production and consumption through the stories of four different dairy goods: fluid milk, butter, ice cream, and the detritus of dairy processing (whey, skim milk, and milk proteins).

Farm animals have been disappearing from our fields as the production of food has become a global industry. We no longer know for certain what is entering the food chain and what we are eating. We are reaching a tipping point as the farming revolution threatens our countryside, health and the quality of our food wherever we live in the world. From the antibiotics routinely given to industrially farmed animals to the chemicals that are killing our insect populations, Farmageddon is a fascinating and terrifying investigative journey behind the closed doors of a runaway industry across the world - from Europe to the USA, from China to Latin America. It is both a wake-up call to change our current food production and eating practices, and an attempt to find a way to a better farming future.

Recent years have seen a rise in the number of consumers wishing to know more about the journey their food takes from farm to fork. Consumer expectations of the sensory and nutritional qualities of food products have increased as a result. Poultry producers and processors must balance these quality parameters with other requirements such as yield and animal welfare. Improving poultry meat quality addresses the wealth of recent research on the genetic and environmental factors affecting the development of quality traits in poultry meat and their potential implications for breeding, husbandry and postharvest processing. This collection also reviews recent advances in understanding colour, texture and flavour development in poultry meat. A particular focus is coverage of key poultry myopathies associated with modern broiler production such as white striping, wooden breast and pale soft exudative meat. The book considers their causes, impacts on meat quality and how these defects can be prevented or overcome.

This collection features four peer-reviewed reviews on viral diseases affecting pigs. The first chapter summarises recent research on the causes and epidemiology of major bacteria, viruses and parasites found in pig production, focussing on those with a particular impact on safety and global production, such as African swine fever, Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) and Porcine Epidemic Diarrhoea (PED). The second chapter reviews advances in understanding mechanisms of porcine viral disease transmission and pathogenesis. The chapter concludes with commonly used measures for prevention and control of viral diseases of pigs, emphasizing the importance of the vaccination programs as cornerstone of swine health programs. The third chapter discusses our current understanding of the mechanisms of resistance to the major respiratory diseases affecting pigs, including PRRS. The chapter considers the use of marker-selection and genetic modification as mechanisms to prevent the infection of PRRS and reduce its impact on swine health. The final chapter considers the transmission, clinical presentation, evolution and spread of two major diseases affecting swine production - PRRS and PED. The chapter reviews the impact of each virus on a global scale, as well as its impact on swine production in the United Kingdom.

The science and practice of pig production has changed rapidly over recent decades; new husbandry practices, new understandings of growth, reproduction and health, new appreciations of welfare and environmental impact, new nutritional approaches, and modern reproductive and genetic techniques have all come into being, together with the emergence of new health challenges.

Now in its third edition, this long established reference book on the management, breeding, feeding, nutrition, health and welfare of pigs has been fully revised to provide clear and current information on both the practical and scientific aspects of the pig industry. With the help of a new panel of international experts and a senior editor, the overall structure now contains input from international centres across Europe and North America.

This edition includes:

Updated versions of existing chapters;

Completely revised and new sections on: Pig meat and carcass quality, Reproduction, The maintenance of health, Nutritional value of protein and amino acids in feed stuffs, Value of fats and oils in pig diets, Product marketing, Environmental management, Simulation modelling;

Input from international authorities;

Many tables, diagrams, photographs and figures.

Whilst it can mean enhanced biosecurity, intensive and globalised pig production (based on a narrowing genetic base) also potentially increases the risk of disease and its spread. It has been estimated that diseases can lower pig production efficiency by 10-15%, though financial losses can be much greater. Optimising pig herd health and production highlights the need to develop more preventative measures that can be implemented to tackle the increasing threat of disease. The book addresses recent developments in disease prevention, focussing on how farmers and producers can utilise feed management and housing to optimise pig health, as well as the role of vaccine development in preventing the onset of endemic and emerging diseases in pigs. Through highlighting the importance of understanding and identifying disease, the book showcases how our understanding of the mechanisms of transmission for some of the key porcine viral and bacterial diseases can be applied to optimise pig herd health and production.