Growth Of Farm Animals

An understanding of the processes that change the shape and composition of farm animals is fundamental to all aspects of production. Updated to include new chapters on avian growth and global warming, and citing new research throughout, this comprehensive textbook provides key information on how animals grow and change in shape and composition, and the factors that affect these processes. Presented in a larger format with new photographs and focus boxes, this third edition continues to fill the important role of helping to understand how the basics of growth must be thoroughly understood if farm animals are to be used efficiently and humanely in producing food for mankind.

An understanding of the processes which change the size, shape, and composition of farm animals is fundamental to all aspects of production which seeks to meet human dietary and other needs. This book provides, within the limits of a student text, a broad review of how animals grow and change in shape and composition, as well as those factors which affect growth processes and which dictate the extent and direction of changes within the animal. The presentation progresses from cell to tissue to entire animal and includes a description of those factors within the animal, particular genes, hormones, and gender, which fashion this progression, and how efficiency for production can be maximized. The main focus is on classical principles of growth and its measurement rather than on topics such as growth manipulation or molecular biology. Most of the information focuses on farm mammals, particularly cattle, sheep, and pigs. The book fills a gap in the literature by taking the reader from cell to complete animal, based on original anatomical studies and quantitative approaches which have been developed subsequently. It presents a core text for advanced undergraduate courses in animal science and production, and will be an essential acquisition for librarians in agriculture and veterinary science.

An understanding of the processes that change the shape and composition of farm animals is fundamental to all aspects of production. Updated to include new chapters on avian growth and global warming, and citing new research throughout, this comprehensive textbook provides key information on how animals grow and change in shape and composition, and the factors that affect these processes. Presented in a larger format with new photographs and focus boxes, this third edition continues to fill the important role of helping to understand how the basics of growth must be thoroughly understood if farm animals are to be used efficiently and humanely in producing food for mankind.

This text covers the fundamentals of growth in economically important farm animals. There is a discussion of cell structure, feeding patterns, natural and artificial selection and growth-zygote to full differentiation. All aspects are treated in the context of data relating to farm animal growth.

This book describes the cellular and molecular mechanisms that control farm animal growth, includingdevelopment and body composition. The emphasis is on circulating hormones, local growth factors andgene transcription factors which regulate growth and differentiation of skeletal muscle, bone andadipose tissue. Overall, this book will be an important resource for students that have a limitedbackground in cell, molecular and developmental biology and the effect of endocrine and growthfactors on the growth process.

In some countries, especially on the European continent, there still exists a remarkable veal market. This type of meat production seems, irrespective of any economic forecasts, to remain unchallenged so long as consumers expect that restaurants should offer courses like "r6ti de veaux", "vitello a la casa" or "Kalbsschnitzel". Producers, at least since about the past 1-/2 decades, have been aware of the beneficial effect of anabolic agents in veal production. This is possible due to the lack of endogenous sexual hormones during the juvenile or prepuberal status of these animals. A discussion about the benefit / risk - evaluation in connection with the use of anabolic agents in general was promoted in recent years by the public. This concern occurred concomitantly with the detection of illegally treated veal calves and the occurrence of diethylstilbestrol (DES) residues in canned food containing veal. The aim of this paper is to summarize the present status of residue data in edible tissues and excreta in order to allow the evaluation of the risk (given in the paper of Hoffmann within this program) and to consider reasonable monitoring measures. We have to face the fact that without an efficient control system the illegal treatment of calves can not be excluded. Therefore, this paper will not only consider different compounds and formulations, but will also deal with practised routes of administration.