Talk:Animal husbandry
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The section Conservation doesn't seem (to someone such as myself who knows nothing about animal husbandry or Vechoor cows) to have anything to do with animal husbandry -- not, at least, as it is currently written. If the salvation of the Vechoor cow is appropriate here, the relevance should be made explicit. Otherwise, perhaps the section should be moved to a different article.
One-dimensional Tangent 03:21, 23 Apr 2005 (UTC)
Random reference to the Bible? Does not provide support to claim world's oldest profession, many civilizations existed before the Bible, perhaps something from those civilization's documents instead of the Bible. --Countchoc 18:50, 14 July 2006 (UTC)
What's with the picture set chosen for this article? Too many pictures, and few have anything to with the idea of animal husbandry as a science per se. MKV 05:21, 23 June 2007 (UTC)
Section 2.1's title is wayyyy to long. I've changed it to something smaller. It also seems biased, to me, and might be considered for a rewrite to NPOV. - Howryn 14:33, 2 October 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Removed POV section
I just cut out the following from the article. It is way to POV (alarmist i.e. "pushing hybridization with such zeal" also "has become another serious and alarming cause of genetic pollution") and barely touches on animals since much of the text refers to plants. This section should focus on animals and tone down the rhetoric. David D. (Talk) 03:24, 12 November 2007 (UTC)
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- Hybridization, Genetic engineering, Genetic pollution and Food security
- See also: Biodiversity, Genetic pollution, and Food security
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- In agriculture and animal husbandry, green revolution popularized the use of conventional hybridization to increase yield many folds by creating "High yielding varieties". Often the handful of breeds of plants and animals hybridized originated in developed countries and were further hybridized with local verities, in the rest of the developing world, to create high yield strains resistant to local climate and diseases. Local governments and industry since have been pushing hybridization with such zeal that several of the wild and indigenous breeds evolved locally over thousands of years having high resistance to local extremes in climate and immunity to diseases etc. have already become extinct or are in grave danger of becoming so in the near future. Due to complete disuse because of un-profitability and uncontrolled intentional, compounded with unintentional cross-pollination and crossbreeding (genetic pollution) formerly huge gene pools of various wild and indigenous breeds have collapsed causing widespread genetic erosion and genetic pollution resulting in great loss in genetic diversity and biodiversity as a whole[1].
- A Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) is an organism whose genetic material has been altered using the genetic engineering techniques generally known as recombinant DNA technology. Genetic Engineering today has become another serious and alarming cause of genetic pollution because artificially created and genetically engineered plants and animals in laboratories, which could never have evolved in nature even with conventional hybridization, can live and breed on their own and what is even more alarming interbreed with naturally evolved wild varieties. Genetically Modified (GM) crops today have become a common source for genetic pollution, not only of wild varieties but also of other domesticated varieties derived from relatively natural hybridization[2][3][4][5][6].
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- It is being said that genetic erosion coupled with genetic pollution is destroying that needed unique genetic base thereby creating an unforeseen hidden crisis which will result in a severe threat to our food security for the future when diverse genetic material will cease to exist to be able to further improve or hybridize weakening food crops and livestock against more resistant diseases and climatic changes[7].
[edit] Another problematic section
What does this have to do with animal husbandry? It uses plant examples and really does not seem to fit with the article. It's and bit like a rant too. David D. (Talk) 03:30, 12 November 2007 (UTC)
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- Genetic erosion in agricultural and livestock biodiversity
- See also: Genetic erosion and Agricultural biodiversity
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- Genetic erosion in agricultural and livestock biodiversity is the loss of genetic diversity, including the loss of individual genes, and the loss of particular combinants of genes (or gene complexes) such as those manifested in locally adapted landraces of domesticated animals or plants adapted to the natural environment in which they originated. The term genetic erosion is sometimes used in a narrow sense, such as for the loss of alleles or genes, as well as more broadly, referring to the loss of varieties or even species. The major driving forces behind genetic erosion in crops are: variety replacement, land clearing, overexploitation of species, population pressure, environmental degradation, overgrazing, policy and changing agricultural systems.
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- The main factor, however, is the replacement of local varieties of domestic plants and animals by high yielding or exotic varieties or species. A large number of varieties can also often be dramatically reduced when commercial varieties (including GMOs) are introduced into traditional farming systems. Many researchers believe that the main problem related to agro-ecosystem management is the general tendency towards genetic and ecological uniformity imposed by the development of modern agriculture.
[edit] Sexist
Who else notices the fact that in this context "husbandry" is used to mean taking care of/raising and training an animal?? We should use more neutral phrases to describe the concept of raising animals in the 21st century people...