How to raise rabbits for a steady source of meat and income Rabbits are one of the most sustainable, nutritious, and economic meat sources available. They can easily be raised in a variety of locations and climates, and require less space and infrastructure than many other species of livestock. Raising Rabbits for Meat is the how-to guide to help you succeed in starting and running a home rabbitry for a steady source of meat or income. Coverage includes: The history of the domestic rabbit Information on breeding, housing, and harvesting Tools to help you succeed with your program An emphasis on heritage breeds. Raising Rabbits for Meat provides a solid foundation for success in raising rabbits and is ideal for anyone interested in starting a small rabbitry for home use or to market rabbit meat as a business opportunity.

Welfare research has established a range of scientific indicators of stress, welfare and suffering in animals that can be applied to all aspects of improving their welfare through good housing and management, and the topic continues to grow in importance among both professionals and the public. The practical focus of this authoritative, comprehensive encyclopedia aims to promote the understanding and improvement of animals' behaviour without compromising welfare. Under the editorial direction of Professor Daniel Mills, the UK's first specialist in veterinary behavioural medicine, over 180 international experts have contributed a wealth of fully cross-referenced entries from concise definitions to detailed short essays on biological, practical, clinical and ethical aspects of behaviour and welfare in domestic, exotic, companion and zoo animals.

Cows and horses, donkeys and mules, sheep and goats, pigs and fowl, even llamas are living on small farms and in backyard barnyards throughout the United States. But how and where are these critters being housed?
Author Carol Ekarius knows. In "How to Build Animal Housing," she provides dozens of plans--with illustrated, step-by-step instructions--for species-specific shelters that are well ventilated, safe, appropriate for the animals, appealing, convenient, and a solid value for their owners.
The book is essential reading for anyone interested in animal health and welfare. It includes complete plans and step-by-step, illustrated instructions for sheds, coops, hutches, multipurpose barns, and economical easy-to-build windbreaks and shade structures. Ekarius covers new high-tech, portable structures made of plastics and fabrics, such as hoop houses and hen spas, as well as more traditional alternatives, such as straw-bale structures. Always practical, she enumerates the advantages and disadvantages of ready-to-build kits and modular barnyard buildings and includes designs for watering systems, feeders, chutes, stanchions, and more--the essentials that help owners keep their animals healthy and happy.
Ekarius wisely emphasizes the importance of careful planning, choosing an appropriate housing site, and complying with local zoning regulations; pest control, basic housing maintenance, and insurance costs are also discussed. Real-world advice from farmers and veterinarians on the types of housing and facilities animals like best enliven the text throughout.
"How to Build Animal Housing" is the most comprehensive and useful guide of its kind. For small-scale farmers, hobby farmers, do-it-yourselfers, and animal lovers, this book is indispensable.

The Science of Animal Growth and Meat Technology, Second Edition, combines fundamental science- based and applied, practical concepts relating to the prenatal and postnatal growth of cattle, sheep and pigs. It provides the necessary components to understand the production and growth of livestock for safe and quality meat products and presents an understanding of the principles of meat science and technology that is needed to understand the meat industry. Information on the slaughter process of animals, muscle structure and meat tenderness, meat quality, meat safety, and microbiology makes this a valuable self-study reference for students and professionals entering the field.

Raise a gaggle of geese, the unsung heroes of the small farm While chickens preen in the spotlight, geese are the historic unsung heroes of small farms and homesteads. Providing weed control, large eggs, and entertainment, and acting as "security" over other animals, geese are the ultimate modern homesteading companion. The Modern Homesteader's Guide to Keeping Geese covers everything you need to know to raise geese, including: Profiles of breeds and how to select the best one for your needs How to "imprint" goslings on a person Feeding, housing, animal health, and cold weather care Using geese for weed control, soil improvement, and as "watch-geese" Cooking with goose eggs and meat Additional coverage includes a look at the rich history of geese on farms in North America and Europe that will enhance any goose keeper's enjoyment of these intelligent and unique birds. This practical guide is a must-have essential for the kitchen table of homesteaders, small farmers, permaculturists, and professional farmers looking to add the power of geese to their land.

Mark Purdey's life changed one day in 1984 when a Ministry of Agriculture inspector told him he must administer a toxic organophosphate pesticide to his dairy herd. Passionately committed to organic farming and convinced of the harmful effects of chemicals in the environment, he refused to comply. 'It was as if my whole life became focused', he explained later. Before they had a chance to prosecute, Purdey took the Ministry to court and won his case. These experiences led him to challenge the orthodox line on the origins of Mad Cow Disease and its human counterpart variant CJD. Could the insecticide used in the official programme have precipitated the spread of the disease?Purdey's quest to discover the truth was hampered at every turn by government bureaucracies and self-serving scientific cliques who sought to smear and marginalize him. Dogged by dirty tricks and forced to work alone as something of a scientific sleuth, he struggled to reveal hidden interests and dangerous secrets. His supporters included many members of the public, as well as Prince Charles and the poet Ted Hughes. The latter wrote to him expressing 'a million congratulations'.Increasingly sceptical of the official narrative, Purdey was certain that toxic environmental factors would provide answers, and so embarked on a self-funded worldwide odyssey to investigate. "Animal Pharm" follows him on these eco-detective trails to locations as diverse as Iceland, Sardinia, Colorado and Australia. Purdey uncovers contamination from industry, munitions, pesticides, nuclear experiments and natural geology, linking these with the emergence of a range of neurodegenerative diseases. His research is at once compelling and disturbing, helping to create a paradigm shift in our understanding of the relationship of pollutants to disease and health.

Grazing animals need to be managed in order to accommodate desired results in terms of animal, plant, land and economic responses. Grazing Management, 2nd Edition integrates principles and management techniques that apply to all grazing lands and to all grazing animals. This comprehensive volume provides authoritative review on a wide range of relevant topics: animal nutrition and nutritional balance when fed on different sorts of grazing lands; seasonal variation and limits placed on ecosystems by grazing; the effects of grazing on grazing lands; the various sorts of grazing behaviors; selecting plants and managing grazing lands, as well as many other important topics bearing upon the methods, practises and procedures for properly managing grazing lands and animals.
* Animal nutrition and nutritional balance when fed on different sorts of grazing lands
* Seasonal variation and limits placed on ecosystems by grazing
* The effects of grazing on grazing lands
* The various sorts of grazing behaviours
* Selecting plants and managing grazing lands

How to Not go Broke Ranching is the irreverent and sometimes humorous effort of a multi generation rancher to help people keep from making all of the mistakes that he made in fifty + years of ranching. It is drawn from real life though some names are changed or not given to protect the guilty. The vast majority of ranches in the United States, whether commercial or life style, are neither profitable nor sustainable; the author explains why this is so and what must be done to improve the situation. The changes in philosophy and in management practices required to do this are spelled out in some detail by a man who used them to turn an almost bankrupt ranch into a consistently profitable and stable operation. The book is not a how-to cookbook but rather is an attempt to get people to think of ranching, and agriculture in general, as the biological endeavors, run on sunshine and rainfall that they once were and should be again, rather than the industrial enterprises that are common today. The methods described have been proven effective by people all over the world and their results can be duplicated by anyone who is willing to think through the situation and is not afraid to be different. As the authors' father once told him, "You have two kinds of neighbors, half of them think you are crazy and the other half knows you are crazy." The management described is not yet universally accepted but it works from all standpoints: it is financially sound, ecologically sound and it is a good way to live and raise a family. Both the new, or would be, rancher just starting out and the established rancher will find information and advice in this book that can be used to make their operation more profitable, less dependent on purchased inputs and markets and a whole lot more fun.

This book contains classic material dating back to the 1900s and before. The content has been carefully selected for its interest and relevance to a modern audience. Each publication has been professionally curated and includes all details on the original source material. This particular instalment, "Goat 's Milk and Its Uses" contains information on cheese, butter and milk. It is intended to illustrate the main uses of goat's milk and serves as a guide for anyone wishing to obtain a general knowledge of the subject and understand the field in its historical context. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

Illustrated by professional artist Eric Copeland, and including amusing anecdotes from the 'joys' of working with pigs for a living, this is the book to read and enjoy preferably before, but certainly the moment those little pigs join the family.A recent report suggests that amateur pig keeping has shot up by 40 per cent since the likes of Gordon Ramsay and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall introduced their young pigs to the TV cameras.But pig experts warn that pig keeping is not for the unwary or uninformed. Apart from the many regulations that have to be observed, there is a great deal to know about feeding, housing, moving and handling your pigs.

Now in a much-anticipated two-volume new edition, this gold-standard reference stands as the most comprehensive and authoritative text on equine reproduction. Serving theriogenologists, practitioners and breeders worldwide as a one-stop resource for the reproductive assessment and management of equine patients, "Equine Reproduction, Second Edition" provides detailed information on examination techniques, breeding procedures, pregnancy diagnosis and management, reproductive tract diseases and surgery, and foaling. A companion CD offers hundreds of images from the book in color.

For the Second Edition, the stallion, mare and foal sections have been thoroughly updated and revised to include the latest information on every subject. New topics include discussion of nutritional and behavioral factors in the broodmare and stallion, parentage testing, fetal sexing and the health and management of older foals, weanlings and yearlings. Additionally, this outstanding Second Edition features a new section on assisted reproductive techniques, including detailed information on artificial insemination, in-vitro fertilization, embryo transfer and technology.

This book is based on papers presented at a symposium held in 2005 in South Africa. It brings together the most recent academic writings on modeling concepts, problems and applications of models and looks at the development, usefulness and limitations of models in pigs and poultry. Contents includes; description of growth and feed intake, modelling social systems and disease effects, nutrient flow models, energy transactions and energy feed systems, optimization of broiler nutrition and modeling egg production in layering hens.

We may be gambling with our lives whenever we purchase meat, milk, or eggs in a supermarket and every time we order a burger at a fast-food restaurant because agribusinesses have allowed unsafe and unhealthy products to be sold and consumed by an unsuspecting public."The Meat You Eat" explains what you should know about how the quality of our food has been greatly compromised in the name of productivity and profit. With large corporations controlling the food supply not only has our health been put at risk but the practices these companies undertake to mass-produce foods has lead to inhumane treatment of animals, lack of diversity in the food supply, as well as put a strain on the environment. Ken Midkiff argues that there are actions consumers can take. While eating a vegan or vegetarian diet is an option there are ways to keep meat, fish, eggs and more on our plates. We can use and support local farmers and sustainable farming, and demand that our supermarkets and restaurants sell organically grown, free-range, and local products.Featuring a resource guide to sustainable producers of meat, milk, and eggs across the country, "The Meat You Eat" is a call to arms to change the way we eat.

Red Panda: Biology and Conservation of the First Panda, Second Edition, provides the most up-to-date research, data, and conservation solutions for the red pandas, Ailurus species. Since the publication of the previous edition in 2010, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) updated the threat level of red pandas, and they are now considered to be endangered. This latest edition is updated to provide an in-depth look at the scientific and conservation-based issues urgently facing the red panda today. Led by one of the world's leading authorities and advocates for red panda conservation, this new edition includes data from the Population and Habitat Viability (PHVA) workshops conducted in three of the species' range states, Nepal, China, and India; these workshops utilized firsthand information on the decrease of red panda populations due to factors including deforestation, illegal pet trade, human population growth, and climate change. This book also includes updated information from the first edition on reproduction, anatomy, veterinary care, zoo management, and fossil history.

This book brings together studies by national scientists on traditional transhumant grazing systems, emphasizing grazing management and overall land use. Focus is on two zones in temperate Asia: the Himalaya-Hindu Kush and the colder areas of China, Mongolia and parts of Central Asia. Under prevailing conditions, mobile herding is the only sustainable way the population can make best use of the natural resources, but systems were dislocated by collectivization. In the Himalaya there is conflict between herders and sedentary groups. While poor pasture condition is a major constraint, the main problems are socio-economic and institutional and relate to land tenure and grazing rights. Fodder crops are, however, of great interest for settled groups who use the same pastures. Focus on technical solutions, herder training and participatory approaches should be within the context of political decisions.

In order to meet increasing global demand for meat and animal by-products increasingly intensive animal production is necessary. Creating a sustainable system in animal agriculture that works in different production environments is a major challenge for animal scientists. This book draws together themes on sustainability that have emerged as the most pressing in recent years. Addressing practical topics such as air quality, manure management, animal feeds, production efficiency, environmental sustainability, biotechnology issues, animal welfare concerns, societal impacts and an analysis of the data used to assess the economic sustainability of farms.