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Animal Husbandry is a branch of agricultural science that deals with the feeding, caring and breeding of domestic animals for food and fiber. Husbandry means the use of resources carefully, without wasting it.
In animal husbandry, the caring of animals is very important because the animals depend on us for their food and care. It increases production and helps to increase the economy and also helps in the conservation of our natural resources.
In animal husbandry, workers check the requirements of animals such as animal’s shelter, breeding, health, disease control, etc.
Animal Husbandry faming includes:
- Cattle Farming.
- Poultry Farming.
- Fish Production (aquaculture).
- Bee Keeping (apiculture).
We know that for living, we need food to eat. In the past, the food was enough for all and provided by our own land but in our current generation we have to use many resources to get food because traditional methods are unable to meet the needs of all the people. That is why we need to improve crop variety, crop production and crop protection. And thus the need for animal husbandry also increases.
Cattle Farming
Cattle farming refers to the practice of raising cattle for various purposes such as:
- For milk.
- Draught labor for agriculture work such as plowing, irrigation, and transportation.
Generic Name of Cow: Bos Indicus.
Generic Name of Buffalo: Bos Bubalis.
Indian cattle belong to these two categories that are stated just above.
The animals that are used as farm laborers are known as ‘draught animals’.
Milk production of cattle is dependent on its lactation period. By increasing the lactation period the milk production will increase.
Lactation period refers to the period in which the female animal gives birth to their babies.
Exotic breeds of cow in India:
- Jersey.
- Brown Swiss.
- holstein.
Indigenous breed of cow of India:
- Red Sindhi.
- Gir.
- Sahiwal.
Foreign breeds of cow have the character of high milk yielding and indigenous breeds of cow have excellent resistance towards disease.
Breeds of Buffaloes:
| Murrah | Haryana and Punjab | 1800-2500 |
| Mehsana | Gujarat | 1200-2500 |
| Surti | Gujarat | 1600-1800 |
Farmhouse Management Practices
In farmhouse, the cleaning and shelter of cows in done for:
- Clean milk production.
- The health of animals in farmhouse.
The food requirements for dairy animals are of two types:
- maintenances of animals (providing sufficient food to animals for everyday life).
- Milk production requirement (food provided to dairy animals during their lactation period).
Dairy animal's food should contain:
- Roughage (rich in fiber).
- Concentrates (high in protein and other nutrients).
Parasites
Parasites are the organisms that live in or on the body of another organism and cause harm to that organism by absorbing nutrients from their body to nourish themselves.
Parasites may be internal or external.
External parasites cause skin disease.
Internal parasites cause problems in digestion of food or may damage the internal organs.
Poultry Farming
Poultry farming is undertaken with the raise of domestic fowls for egg production and chick meat (broilers).
- Indigenous breed of fowls of India: Aseel and Bursa.
- Exotic breed of fowls in India: Leghorn and Black Minorca.
Fowls are also cross breeded to get an improved breed.
The cross breeding of fowls from Indian and foreign breeds are focused to get the following desirable characters in a fowl:
- Quantity and quality of chicks.
- Dwarf broilers for commercial chick production.
- Tolerance against high temperature.
- Low maintenance requirements.
- Reduction in the size of egg laying birds.
Egg and Broilers Production
Broilers are fed with rich vitamin-containing food for their good growth rate. They are sent to the market for meat purposes.
For good poultry breeding, their health and management is important. It includes:
- Maintenance of temperature.
- Clean surrounding.
- Prevention and control of disease and pests.
Daily food requirements:
- Rich in protein.
- Fat.
- Vitamin A and K.
Fowls mainly get disease through:
- Bacteria.
- Virus.
- Parasites.
- Nutritional deficiencies.
How to prevent fowls from disease?
- Proper cleaning.
- Spraying of disinfectants and sanitizers at regular intervals.
- Provide vaccination.
Fish Production (aqua culture)
We all know that fish is the most important source of protein for our daily food. Fish is rich in protein and is easy to digest. It is also a good source of various vitamins and minerals. Fish is rich in omega 3 fatty acids which helps in reducing the risk of heart diseases. Fish is also rich in vitamin B12 and D which is essential for bone development.
That is why there is a huge demand for fish in the market and the demand is increasing day by day all over the world.
There are some countries whose economy depends upon the fish like India, China, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Thailand.
Fisheries are the place where fishes are grown under the guidance of experienced and expert farmers. It is like a farm of fishes. It is considered to be a very important sector of agriculture.
You should know that as per the data collected from all over the world in 2018, about 500 million people are directly or indirectly dependent on fish for their livelihood.
- Liver oil of fishes are rich in vitamin A and D which are good for the growth of bones and teeth.
On the basis of product, fisheries are divide in two categories:
- Fin fishery.
- Shell fishery like prawns and mollusks.
Ways to obtain fish:
- Capture fishing: This method is used to catch fish from the surface of the water, particularly from natural resources like lakes and rivers.
- Fish farming: It is a process of raising fish in the water. Fish farmers raise fish in ponds or tanks to feed them. Also known as aquaculture or pisciculture.
Marine Fisheries
In marine fishery, fishes are caught from oceans and seas or from the coastal areas of the oceans, (marine means oceanic).
Popular marine fishes include bluefin tuna, pomfret, mackerel, sardines, and bombay duck.
For good production of fishery, the nets are placed in the area where schools of fish are found, so that fishermen can catch a lot of them easily.
Finned fishes: mullets, eels, catfish, sea horse, Atlantic cod.
Shelled fishes: prawns, mussels, oysters which are also cultivated for its pearls.
Mari culture: The practice of rearing marine fishes in coastal areas. Mariculture is also done for commercial purposes.
Inland Fisheries
Inland fisheries include riverine and freshwater fisheries, reservoir fisheries, pond and lake fisheries, and estuarine fisheries.
Most of the fish production from these resources are done by aquaculture.
Aquaculture
The farming and harvesting of plants and animals in water is called aquaculture. It is done for commercial and noncommercial purposes.
Integrated Fish Culture
Integrated fish culture is a method of farming fish along with some agricultural crop such as paddy, banana, coconuts, to give higher yield.
Composite Fish Culture
This is a system in which local and imported fishes are used. Five or six different types of fishes are kept in a pond. These fishes are selected in a way so that they will not compete for food and space. They will eat different types of food and grow in a separate way although in the same water body. By this every part of the pond and food will be utilized and the yield will be high.
Fishes used in composite fish culture are Catla, Rohu, Silver Carp, Grass Carp, Common Carp, Mrigal.
Hormone Stimulation
It is a technique in which hormone is injected into another fish seed to reproduce it and get desirable characteristics. It ensures a good fish seed with desired qualities.
Bee Keeping (Api-culture)
Apiculture is the rearing, feeding, caring of bees to obtain honey and nectar made by bees. Honey made by bees is rich in iron and calcium. Bees are also used in medicines. Bee keeping is a profitable business, it provides us with natural honey, beeswax and royal jelly.
Variety of bees:
- Apis cerana Indica (Indian bee).
- Apis dorsata (the rock bee).
- Apis florea (the little bee).
Indian bee variety:
- Apis mellifera (the western bee).
- Apis adamsoni (South African bee).
Italian bees have a good ability to collect honey, both in quality and quantity.
Pasturage (flora) or flowering plants for bees to collect nectar are lilacs, lavender, wisteria, mint, sunflower, poppies, honeysuckle.
Honey flow period is the total time period during which bees collect nectar and pollen.
The quality of honey depends on the flowers present for bees to collect nectar and pollen. The kind of flower determines the color and taste of honey.
Revolutions In Food Resources
These revolutions in food resources are done so that the increasing food requirements of ever increasing population can be met. The main objective is to increase the per capita availability of food in the world from various branches of food resources, either it is crop production or meat or poultry. The revolution in food resources is done by using modern techniques, methods, and equipment. These revolutions are given specific names according to the kind of resources they are using:
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| Green Revolution | Grain production | M. S. Swaminathan |
| Blue Revolution | Fish production | Dr. Arun Krishnan |
| Golden Revolution | Pulse production | Nirpakh Jutej |
| Yellow Revolution | Oil production | Sam Pitroda |
| White Revolution | Milk production | Dr. Verghese Kurien |
| Silver Revolution | Egg production | Indira Gandhi |
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