Animal husbandry
Animal husbandry is the breeding, care, feeding, and management of domesticated animals for products, labor, or other human uses.
Selective breeding: The deliberate mating of organisms to increase the frequency of inherited traits. Breeders choose parents to strengthen useful traits across generations.
Dairy farming: The raising of animals, chiefly cattle, to produce milk and dairy products. Dairy herds are managed around lactation, milking, and replacement of breeding animals.
Animal domestication: The multigenerational process by which human influence changes wild animal populations into domesticated ones. Husbandry depends on animal populations shaped by generations of human control.
Livestock farming: The raising of domesticated animals for food, materials, labor, or other products. Husbandry practices operate within the broader systems of livestock production.
Animal nutrition: The study of how animals obtain and use nutrients for maintenance, growth, and reproduction. Rations determine whether animals meet the demands of growth, work, or production.
Poultry farming: The raising of domesticated birds, especially chickens, for meat or eggs. Poultry systems specialize in egg production or rapid meat production.
Neolithic Revolution: The transition in several regions from foraging to farming and settled life, beginning around 10,000 BCE. Agriculture and permanent settlements made sustained livestock keeping possible.
Greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture: The release of gases such as methane and nitrous oxide from agricultural activities. Ruminant digestion and manure management contribute to agricultural emissions.
Livestock housing: The design and management of structures that shelter farm animals. Shelter and space affect comfort, hygiene, and exposure to weather.
Sheep farming: The keeping and breeding of sheep for wool, meat, milk, or breeding stock. Sheep husbandry combines grazing with production of several animal products.