Objectives/Goals Of Animal Husbandry

Humans have depended on animals for their food, clothing, security, transportation, pulling the load, etc. Humans have tried to improve the breeds of domestic animals, and their characteristic traits and increase their number as they are useful for humans. For example, milk production can be increased by increasing the duration of the lactation period of female animals. Through hybridisation, crops of desired properties can be obtained. Can this hybridisation be possible in animals as well? Can a species with desired properties be obtained in animals by hybridisation? The answer is yes; hybridisation is also possible in animals.

For example, “Jersey” and “Brown Swiss” are the species with a high lactation period, and the red Sindhi Sahiwal cow is the species with high immunity. If both breeds are mated, the calf will have the property of a longer duration of lactation period and higher disease resistance.

Objectives of animal husbandry

The objectives of animal husbandry are as follows:

• To increase food production for the increasing population

• To increase the production of milk

• To obtain hardy livestock like bulls and buffaloes to help in the ploughing of fields and transportation

• To increase the production of eggs and meat

• To increase the production of fish because fishes are a very rich source of proteins

• To increase the production of honey

Animal husbandry methods 

There are various animal husbandry methods, including cattle farming, poultry farming, fish production, honey production, etc. These methods are explained in detail below:

Cattle farming

We get milk from animals like cattle and buffaloes, and these animals also help in the ploughing of fields and transportation. Female milking animals are called milch animals, and animals used for transportation are called draught animals.

Do you think cows always give milk? The female animals give milk only after birth to a calf, and that particular period is called the lactation period. We know that in cattle farming, the animals are sheltered, fed, and brushed regularly to remove dirt and hair from the body. They are provided with a ventilated living space, protecting them from heat, cold, and rain. These animals are fed with fodder and concentrates. Their food contains mostly fibres and concentrates with high levels of proteins and other nutrients. In addition to such nutritious food ingredients, micronutrients are given to promote animal health and milk production.

As animals also get sick, they are vaccinated against viruses and bacterial infections. All this is involved in cattle farming.

Poultry farming

From chickens, we get eggs and meat. So, to increase the number of eggs and meat, chickens should be taken care of, which is called poultry farming. The egg-laying hens are called “layers”, and the meat giving hens are called “boilers”. Hybridisation is also possible in chickens to get desired properties. For example, hybridisation is done between Aseel and foreign leghorns to obtain desired properties like increased offspring, good meat quality, increased egg-laying, and tolerance to high temperature. 

Do you think layers and broilers are raised in the same way? No, they are raised differently. Boilers are fed with “protein, fat, and vitamin-rich supplements” food for a good growth rate and sent to the market for meat purposes. Layers are provided with the right amount of protein and minerals for egg-laying, such as meat, salt, cornflower seeds, etc. Cleanliness is taken care of in poultry farming and cattle farming. Germicide is also spread, and chickens are vaccinated to keep them disease-free.

Fish production

We know that fish, prawns, and crabs are a very good source of protein and are consumed by a large section of the population, especially in the coastal regions. Humans catch fish from seawater, and it is called fishing. Fishes are caught from the sea with the help of nets. To increase fish production, fish farming is carried out. Fish production is increased by culturing and breeding in little areas of the lake and sea. Fish like pomfret, mackerel, tuna, sardine, and Bombay duck is caught in the sea. The marine fish of high economic value are also cultivated in seawater. These fish include mullet, Bethke, prawns, and mussels. Fishes are also caught from canals, ponds, reservoirs, and rivers, but the yield is very low, so in these cases, fish culture is the best to yield more fish. 

Fishes can be cultured with rice crops so that fish can grow in water provided to the crops. This system is called “composite fish culture”. In this system, five or six species of fish are cultured in a single pond and species of fish are selected so that there is no competition for food among them and food available in all parts of the pond is used. Catla takes its food from the surface of the pond, Rohu from the central region of the pond, and Wiggles and Carp take their food from the bottom; these species can simultaneously be cultured in the same water body without competition. This increases the fish yield in the pond, so our fish production is increased.

Honey production

Honey is also considered an animal product. Bees make honey by sitting on various flowers and absorbing the nectar present in the flower. Now, this nectar combines with the enzyme present in the mouth of bees which leads to the production of honey, and the quality of honey depends on the flowers available to the bees. Honey is beneficial for everyone as it contains nutrients and is rich in antioxidants like Vitamin C, ferulic acid, phloretin, and vitamin E. 

To increase the production of honey, bees are reared and maintained. Different bees include episerena indica, apis Dorset, apis flora, and apis mellifera. As beekeeping requires less investment, farmers also consider it an additional source of earning.

Conclusion

We have learnt that we get meat, milk, and eggs from animals. We also get honey from bees. So, animal husbandry aims to take care of useful animals to increase the production of milk, eggs, meat, honey, wax fibres, etc.