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Did You Know? CSIRO: The challenge Dehorning cattle is costly Most cattle, especially in Northern Australia, have horns. Hornless cattle are safer to manage due to reduced risk of injury from horns, between animals and the people handling them. Also, in Australia, beef cattle are often transported for long distances, which adds to the risk of injury from horns. Improving methods to breed cattle without horns will improve animal welfare and benefit industry. To reduce these risks, dehorning became a common husbandry practice in modern farm management. However, dehorning is a labour-intensive procedure, costly and has implications for animal welfare. An alternative management practice was sought to overcome the need or reduce the practice of dehorning. Breeding hornless cattle is one alternative solutions. Selective breeding of naturally hornless (polled) cattle also comes with its challenges. The way horns (or the lack of) are inherited from parents to offspring cannot be determined visually because two hornless cattle can have horned calves. A DNA-based test was required to reduce horns in any herd. The current Australian Poll Gene Marker test is used to determine if an animal is 'true polled', that is, it carries two copies of the polled gene, and naturally lacks horns. Initially developed for use in Brahmans, the test can now be used with a high degree of confidence across a range of tropical and temperate cattle breeds enabling breeders to reduce the presence of horns in subsequent generations. (Source: CSIRO) |
Duties and Tasks
Animal breeders usually do the following:
Working conditions
Animal breeders must be able to
handle stress and work long hours. A typical day
for an animal breeder may start early in the morning and end late at night
(they may start as early as 5:00 a.m. and work until 10:00 p.m).
This schedule may vary depending on the animal’s needs and the breeder’s
personal preferences.
Animal breeders typically work long hours, including weekends and holidays.
Animal breeders typically dress in
casual clothing. However, they may need to wear protective gear when working
with certain animals, such as gloves.
Education and training/entrance requirements
Work as an assistant animal
breeder or in a related position.
Attend animal breeding seminars and workshops.
Join an animal breeding association.
Obtain a license if required in your state.
Employment Opportunities
Animal breeders may work on farms, in animal shelters, animal sanctuaries,
zoos, or in laboratories. Some animal breeders
work as self-employed contractors.
Science Career: Animal Breeder
https://youtu.be/YBCbUasKr7M?si=D5qC2dkLbZtqCW9R
A Dog Breeder is an animal expert who cares for dogs while they produce new litters of puppies. A dog breeder is a professional who mates dogs to produce puppies and matches those puppies to new owners. This typically involves taking care of grown dogs and puppies and helping them find new homes by connecting with potential owners.
Dog Breeders utilize their knowledge of genetics, health, and breed standards to produce litters of puppies that meet specific criteria. They carefully select parent dogs, plan matings, monitor pregnancies, and provide proper care for both the dam and puppies.
Dog breeders produce and train dogs for shows, companionship or pets, with duties ranging from feeding, grooming and bathing dogs to providing medication, assisting in births, studying up on pedigrees, and maintaining breeding records.
(Source:
The Dog Nest)