For much of human history, most of the population lived and worked on farms but today, information about livestock is more likely to come from children's books than hands-on experience. When romanticized notions of an agrarian lifestyle meet with the realities of the modern industrial farm, the result is often a plea for a return to antiquated production methods. The result is a brewing controversy between animal activist groups, farmers, and consumers that is currently being played out in ballot boxes, courtrooms, and in the grocery store. Where is one to turn for advice when deciding whether to pay double the price for cage-free eggs, or in determining how to vote on ballot initiates seeking to ban practices such as the use of gestation crates in pork production or battery cage egg production? At present, there is no clear answer. What is missing from the animal welfare debate is an objective approach that can integrate the writings of biologists and philosophers, while providing a sound and logical basis for determining the consequences of farm animal welfare policies. What is missing in the debate? Economics.
This book journeys from the earliest days of animal domestication to modern industrial farms. Delving into questions of ethics and animal sentience, the authors use data from ingenious consumers' experiments conducted with real food, real money, and real animals to compare the costs and benefits of improving animal care. They show how the economic approach to animal welfare raises new questions and ethical conundrums, as well as providing unique and counter-intuitive results.

This is the first volume in a series of course books for career students and exam candidates preparing for the Stage 1 exam of the British Horse Society. It includes an examination planner, in-text self-assessment questions, BHS syllabus checklist points throughout the text, and examination tips from BHS examiners including common mistakes made. This book deals with the stable management syllabus and the ridden elements of the test.

This book is an essential, thorough, very practical guide to understanding and caring for your rabbit. By following the advice in this book, both rabbit owners and veterinary health professionals report healthier and more content rabbits. Developed from the successful Norwegian text Den Store Kaninboka by the award-winning author Marit Emilie Buseth, Rabbit Behaviour, Health and Care will help you: - develop an understanding of the rabbit's nature, which will help you to spot normal and abnormal behaviour; - learn about the correct living conditions in which to keep domestic rabbits, in terms of their behavioural, physical and social needs; - acquire essential knowledge about rabbit nutrition, dentistry and disease; - discover a new and improved approach to rabbit-keeping through stories and case examples of real rabbits; - gain a rewarding owner-pet relationship. Rabbits are extremely popular pets, but misconceptions about their care and behaviour are widespread. Most illnesses or behaviour problems are a direct or indirect result of poor nutrition and care. This book helps veterinarians and rabbit owners to overcome these challenges by understanding the rabbit's nature and needs.

The second edition of Food Safety and Quality Assurance is a basic reference for veterinarians, extension specialists, and others who help food-animal producers throughout the food chain to provide a safe product to consumers. The assurance of safety and quality must start with the producer. Professionals providing specialized expertise to the producer must be familiar with modern production practices in order to identify activities that may have an adverse effect on safety and quality; must be knowledgeable about microbial and nonmicrobial agents that reduce the marketability of the product and produce disease in the consumer; and must be familiar with modern processing techniques for foods of animal origin to understand the scientific basis for the inspection procedures required by regulatory agencies. This greatly expanded edition provides this information and includes a chapter analyzing the social and political context for the development of food safety and quality assurance inspection of foods of animal origin. Also new to this edition is its examination of egg production, in addition to red meat, poultry, milk, and fish, as well as its coverage of risk assessment and safe food handling at home. The second edition goes beyond North America in scope. As economic trade barriers fall and new trading groups are forged by governments, it is becoming increasingly important to understand food issues, both regulatory and biological, from a global perspective.

Man controls and dominates the habitat of most animals, both domestic and wild and there is a need for a pragmatic, workable approach to the problem of reconciling animal welfare with economic forces and the needs of man. It is the authora s contention that much of the current philosophical discussion of animal welfare is misdirected now that it is possible to measure to some extent what animals think and feel and how much they can appreciate their quality of life. The book deals with farm animals, pets, wild animals and laboratory animals and dicusses their environmental requirements, fear and stress, their response to pain, injury, disease and death, behaviour and aggression, and the implications of biotechnology and genetic engineering. Finally, the book tries to reconcile reverence for life with the inescapability of killing and reviews the prospects of preserving and enhancing quality of life for animals through legislations, education, economic and moral incentives.

This book provides a lucid and compelling analysis of the BSE crisis and how policy-making processes were managed, and of how and why they culminated in catastrophic failure. It is the first comprehensive scholarly analysis of the relationship between science and politics in BSE policy-making. The book re-assesses the conclusions of the Phillips enquiry into the UK government's handling of the BSE epidemic as well as extending and supplementing the analysis. The book evaluates emerging public health policy changes in the light of the experience with the BSE crisis. The ways in which risks, from challenges such as BSE, GM crops, mobile phone masts and global warming, used to be assessed and managed are no longer adequate or acceptable. Traditional arrangements are no longer seen as having either scientific or democratic legitimacy. Governments, scientific advisors, and many stakeholder groups recognise that a new approach to risk policy-making is needed. New structures and processes should be able to provide greater scientific and democratic legitimacy. While BSE policy-making in the UK is a central focus of BSE: risk, science and governance comparisons with policy-making at the European Commission and other European countries are also provided. The authors develop an analysis of how and why BSE policy-making failed and then derive a general set of lessons about how science-based risk policy-making should be understood and re-organised. Those lessons are applicable across the entire field of risk policy-making and can apply in all jurisdictions. The book is directed at those involved in science policy, risk and public health as well as public officials, scientists and policy makers responsible for dealing with issues of risk, public health and policy making. The book will provide a unique analysis based on very real issues of interest across Europe. The authors are well-respected researchers who have published widely on this subject and have recently completed a multi-country study of how BSE has been handled.

Endophytic fungi belonging to the Balansieae tribe were first hypothesized to cause poor livestock performance in 1977 and, in 1980, the association was validated. The fungi were extensively studied and classified according to morphology, their life cycles exam- ined to determine methods to eliminate the fungi in grasses, and practical methods devel- oped for livestock producers to eliminate endophyte-infected plants from pastures and establish endophyte-free plants. Hindsight illustrates how primitive was our understanding of the associations between endophyte, grass plant, and animal. The plant/endophyte asso- ciations, thought to be rare cases, have now been identified in grasses that are adapted from tropical to nearly arctic, and from marshland to desert climatic regimes. In the two decades that have passed since the first endophyte-plant-animal associa- tion was made, the scientific community has re-classified the endophytic fungi twice (now the genus Neotyphodium), ~he systematics and ecological role of endophytes have been more clearly defined, endophytes and grasses are now generally accepted as mutualistic symbionts, the chemistry of toxins and their functions defined, beneficial effects of endo- phytes on plants identified, and commercial ventures have emerged based upon endophyte research in the turfgrass and livestock industries.

Few consumers are aware of the economic forces behind the production of meat, fish, eggs, and dairy. Yet omnivore and herbivore alike, the forces of meatonomics affect us in many ways.

Most importantly, we've lost the ability to decide for ourselves what - and how much - to eat. Those decisions are made for us by animal food producers who control our buying choices with artificially-low prices, misleading messaging, and heavy control over legislation and regulation. Learn how and why they do it and how you can respond.

Written in a clear and accessible style, "Meatonomics" provides vital insight into how the economics of animal food production influence our spending, eating, health, prosperity, and longevity

"Meatonomics" is the first book to add up the huge "externalized" costs that the animal food system imposes on taxpayers, animals and the environment, and it finds these costs total about $414 billion yearly. With yearly retail sales of around $250 billion, that means that for every $1 of product they sell, meat and dairy producers impose almost $2 in hidden costs on the rest of us. But if producers were forced to internalize these costs, a $4 Big Mac would cost about $11.

The global drive towards sustainability and improved animal health means there is a greater need for development of novel functional ingredients for the feed industry. As the requirements for protein for livestock feed and human consumption grows, the use of insect products as animal feed has gained increasing attention. Covering global production systems of insect protein, oil and chitin, as well as co-products from this industry, this book: - Considers in-depth nutritional and safety aspects of insects for feed. - Reviews suitability of insects as feed for different animal species and life stages. - Examines current knowledge of the value of insect-rearing residues as biofertilizers for crop health. - Identifies the challenges related to regulation, legislation, consumer perception and acceptance, and commercialization of insects. - Provides interviews with established and early-stage innovative companies producing insect protein for feed. Including a focus on practices such as waste valorization, this book takes a holistic look at how insects could contribute to the sustainability of livestock production on a global scale. Providing an up-to-date reference for research scientists, nutritionists, and veterinarians, as well as prospective insect farmers, it will also be of interest to those with a broader curiosity towards climate change, sustainability, and the circular economy.

This book elaborately covers all topics of swine management like breeding, feeding, housing, health management and pork production technology.The book is well supported by a large number of illustrations and tables which makes the understanding of the text very simple and easy. It will be very useful for all students as well as professionals. Note: T& F does not sell or distribute the Hardback in India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

Systems Biology is an interdisciplinary approach to the study of life made possible through the explosion of molecular data made available through the genome revolution and the simultaneous development of computational technologies that allow us to interpret these large data sets. Systems Biology has changed the way biological science views and studies life and has been implemented in research efforts across the biological sciences. Systems Biology and Livestock Science will be the first book to review the latest advances using this research methodology in efforts to improve the efficiency, health, and quality of livestock production. Systems Biology and Livestock Science opens with useful introductory chapters explaining key systems biology principles. The chapters then progress to look at specific advances in fields across livestock science. Coverage includes, but is not limited to, chapters on systems biology approaches to animal nutrition, reproduction, health and disease, and animal physiology. Written by leading researchers in the field, Systems Biology and Livestock Science, will be an invaluable resource to researchers, professionals, and advance students working in this rapidly developing discipline.

This open access book focuses on climate change, Indigenous reindeer husbandry, and the underlying concept of connecting the traditional knowledge of Indigenous reindeer herders in the Arctic with the latest research findings of the world's leading academics. The Arctic and sub-Arctic environment, climate, and biodiversity are changing in ways unprecedented in the long histories of the north, challenging traditional ways of life, well-being, and food security with legitimate concerns for the future of traditional Indigenous livelihoods. The book provides a clear and thorough overview of the potential problems caused by a warming climate on reindeer husbandry and how reindeer herders' knowledge should be brought to action. In particular, the predicted impacts of global warming on winter climate and the resilience of the reindeer herding communities are thoroughly discussed.

First published in 1984, this volume comprised a broad synthesis of contemporary research on sheep reproduction conducted in Australia. Australia is internationally recognized for the excellence of its research in this field, and heads the world in areas of the neuro-endocrine control of reproduction, reproductive behaviour, artificial insemination and manipulation of reproductive performance, to name just a few. The book comprises some 23 review papers and short communications, all refereed by experts in the field, covering such topics as neuro-endocrinology, sexual behaviour, testicular and ovular function, pregnancy and foetal growth, parturition, lamb survival, nutrition and genetics. Advanced methods, developed in the seventies and early eighties to control reproductive function, gene manipulation and intra-uterine insemination are also considered, together with the managerial and economic values of such developments.

This book covers hot topics in the nutrition and metabolism of terrestrial and aquatic animals, including the interorgan transport and utilization of water, minerals, amino acids, glucose, and fructose; the development of alternatives to in-feed antibiotics for animals (e.g., swine and poultry); and metabolic disorders (or diseases) resulting from nutrient deficiencies. It enables readers to understand the crucial roles of nutrients in the nutrition, growth, development, and health of animals. Such knowledge has important implications for humans. Readers will also learn from well-written chapters about the use of new genome-editing biotechnologies to generate animals (e.g., cows and swine) as bioreactors that can produce large amounts of pharmaceutical proteins and other molecules to improve the health and well-being of humans and other animals, as well as the growth and productivity of farm animals. Furthermore, the book provides useful information on the use of animals (e.g., cattle, swine, sheep, chickens, and fish) as models in biomedical research to prevent and treat human diseases, develop infant formulas, and improve the cardiovascular and metabolic health of offspring with prenatal growth restriction. Editor of this book is an internationally recognized expert in nutrition and metabolisms. He has about 40 years of experience with research and teaching at world-class universities in the subject matters. He has published more than 660 papers in peer-reviewed journals, 90 chapters in books, and authored two text/reference books, with a very high H-index of 127 and more than 66,000 citations in Google Scholar. This publication is a useful reference for nutrition and biomedical professionals, as well as undergraduate and graduate students in animal science, aquaculture, zoology, wildlife, veterinary medicine, biology, biochemistry, food science, nutrition, pharmacology, physiology, toxicology, and other related disciplines. In addition, all chapters provide general and specific references to nutrition and metabolism for researchers and practitioners in animal agriculture (including aquaculture), dietitians, animal and human medicines, and for government policy makers.

Charismatic David Kennard lives a life most people can only dream about. Farming on a spectacularly beautiful part of the Devon coast he has an almost telepathic bond with nature and with his working sheepdogs. His is a life filled with daily challenges, from the battles with wild Atlantic weather to the dramas of clifftop rescue, but it is also a life full of the richness of rebirth, and the Herriotesque delight in a way of life that has remained almost untouched by the modern world. Part diary, part homage to the countryside and the canine family that is so much a part of his life, David Kennard's extraordinary book is designed to touch the hearts and minds of city and country dwellers alike.

Globally, the way the animal production industry copes with infectious diseases is changing. The (excessive) use of antimicrobials is under debate and it is becoming standard practice to implement thorough biosecurity plans on farms to prevent the entry and spread of pathogenic micro-organisms. Not only in farm animal production, but also in facilities where companion animals are kept, including in veterinary practices and clinics, awareness of the beneficial implications of a good biosecurity plan has raised. The book Biosecurity in Animal Production and Veterinary Medicine is the first compilation of both fundamental aspects of biosecurity practices, and specific and practical information on the application of the biosecurity measures in different animal production and animal housing settings. The book starts with a general introductory chapter on the epidemiology of infectious diseases, followed by a chapter explaining the general principles of biosecurity. Specific topics of biosecurity, including rodent and insect control, cleaning and disinfection, hygiene and decontamination of feed, drinking water and air, and measuring the biosecurity status of farms, are detailed in dedicated chapters. Explanations on the relevance of the implementation of biosecurity plans in order to improve animal health and performance and reduce antimicrobial usage are described, and a chapter on ways to motivate farmers to implement a biosecurity plan has been included. Practical chapters deal with biosecurity in the poultry, pig and cattle industry, horse facilities, dog kennels, veterinary practices and clinics and laboratory animal facilities. The book is a practical guide that can be used by farm and animal facility managers, consultants, veterinarians, animal caretakers, and people with an interest in prevention of diseases in animals. Academics and students will benefit from the book because it contains all relevant information on animal biosecurity.

Originally published in England in 1910, this story of a shepherd, Caleb Bawcombe, describes life in the south-central English county of Wiltshire before the turn of the 20th century. It is a charming picture of pastoral life that often seems idyllic and simple when viewed from the present. Caleb Bawcombe is a fictitious name thought to represent one James Lawes, and the town in the tale, Winterbourne Bishop, has been identified as the town of Martin. Friends, family, and acquaintances are interwoven in Caleb's story, and the interaction between humanity and nature is highlighted, capturing life at that specific time and place.

Pyrrhic Progress analyses over half a century of antibiotic use, regulation, and resistance in US and British food production. Mass-introduced after 1945, antibiotics helped revolutionize post-war agriculture. Food producers used antibiotics to prevent and treat disease, protect plants, preserve food, and promote animals' growth. Many soon became dependent on routine antibiotic use to sustain and increase production. The resulting growth of antibiotic infrastructures came at a price. Critics blamed antibiotics for leaving dangerous residues in food, enabling bad animal welfare, and selecting for antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in bacteria, which could no longer be treated with antibiotics. Pyrrhic Progress reconstructs the complicated negotiations that accompanied this process of risk prioritization between consumers, farmers, and regulators on both sides of the Atlantic. Unsurprisingly, solutions differed: while Europeans implemented precautionary antibiotic restrictions to curb AMR, consumer concerns and cost-benefit assessments made US regulators focus on curbing drug residues in food. The result was a growing divergence of antibiotic stewardship and a rise of AMR. Kirchhelle's comprehensive analysis of evolving non-human antibiotic use and the historical complexities of antibiotic stewardship provides important insights for current debates on the global burden of AMR.

This book is an officially authorised advisory manual that implements the recommendations on the energy and protein requirements of cattle, sheep and goats made by the AFRC Technical Committee on Responses to Nutrients (TCORN) since its establishment in 1982. TCORN has produced a series of numbered reports including No. 5 in 1990 on 'Nutrient Requirements on Ruminant Animals: Energy' and in 1992, No. 9 'Nutrient Requirements of Ruminant Animals: Protein'. The former recommended, with only minor modifications, the adoption of the AFRC's 1980 Technical Review's full recommendations on energy requirements of ruminants, while the latter recommended the adoption of a protein system based on Metabolisable Protein as the unit. Opportunity has been taken to include material from TCORN Report No. 8, 1991 on the 'Voluntary Intake of Silage by Cattle' and from an unpublished TCORN Report on the 'Nutrition of Goats'. The current volume presents these recommendations in a practical form designed for use by advisors, farmers, lecturers, research workers and students concerned with the nutrition of ruminant animals. The manual includes 45 tables of requirements (incorporating agreed safety margins) and 29 example diets.

"The Well-Being of Farm Animals: Challenges and Solutions" is the first title in Blackwell Publishing Professional's groundbreaking series Issues in Animal Bioethics. This important book examines the ethical and economic importance of production animal well-being and pain management--topics of increasing concern to consumers.

"The Well-Being of Farm Animals: Challenges and Solutions" offers veterinarians, veterinary and agriculture students, animal scientists, and food animal producers both practical methods to enhance farm animal well-being, and greater understanding of the theoretical underpinnings of those methods. With a variety of perspectives from respected experts and specialists, this book conveys new research findings and promotes valuable discourse on critical issues. Most importantly, editors Benson and Rollin provide feasible instruction to put theory into practice.

The theories and applications presented in this book are likely to be legislated in the future. Therefore, it is important for veterinarians in production animal medicine to keep abreast of the latest issues in promoting animal well-being, and implement sound animal welfare methods every day. "The Well-Being of Farm Animals: Challenges and Solutions" provides the information veterinarians need to do both.

In today's world, we are witnessing simultaneous breakthroughs in reproductive technologies, genomics, and molecular biology. Advances in molecular genetic technology and understanding of the bovine genome have led to the development of tools that can be used to enhance profitability on cow-calf enterprises. Factors Affecting Calf Crop: Biotechnology of Reproduction provides a detailed compilation of current and forthcoming technology for managing reproduction in cattle. The book discusses topics such as: approved techniques for controlling the estrous cycle in cattle; managing follicular growth with progesterone, estrogens, and prostaglandins; freezing, thawing, and transfer of cattle embryos; application of embryo transfer to the beef cattle industry; embryo transfer in topically adapted cattle; new factors affecting bull fertility; embryo collection and utilization technology, in vitro fertilization, somatic cell cloning, and genetic technologies; uses of real-time ultrasound; and sexed semen. Over 25 leading animal scientists have combined their expertise to produce the first single-source reference that covers successful reproductive techniques that will, most likely, be the wave of the future. Expansive in scope, the book addresses current biotechnologies as they impact the production of beef cattle. Written at a level to appeal to the researcher, commercial producer, or student, Factors Affecting Calf Crop: Biotechnology of Reproduction presents you with a wealth of technologies applicable to animal agriculture.

The Sunday Times bestseller full of inspiring tales of life as a shepherdess, by the star of Channel 5's Our Yorkshire Farm. From bestselling author Amanda Owen come more stories of life at Ravenseat, the remote Yorkshire hill farm she shares with husband Clive, eight children and 1,000 sheep. In A Year in the Life of the Yorkshire Shepherdess she describes the age-old cycles of a farming year and the constant challenges the family faces, from being cut off in winter to tending their flock on some of Yorkshire's highest, bleakest moors - land so inaccessible that in places it can only be reached on foot. Writing with her trademark warmth and humour, Amanda takes us into her life as nine-year-old Miles gets his first flock, Reuben takes up the flugelhorn and she gives birth to a new baby girl. She is touched by the epic two-day journey of a mother sheep determined to find her lamb and gives a new home to an ageing and neglected horse. Meanwhile Clive is almost arrested on a midnight stakeout to catch a sheep-worrying dog and becomes the object of affection for a randy young bull. Funny, poignant and charming, A Year in the Life of the Yorkshire Shepherdess is a must for anyone interested in the countryside and those who farm it. 'Amanda Owen is like a breath of fresh air. Amanda's life is one of old-fashioned values, hard graft and plenty of love. She, like her life, is extraordinary' - Ben Fogle