Human ecology and the evolution of livestock

The number of livestock breeds native to a country is related to the size of the human population. This is presumably because in populous countries there are complex requirements for livestock to serve a wide range of functions. However, diversification of breeds within a country or regio is also related to ecological factors and to human geography. This relationship is discussed in the context of Africa. Breed diversity may be associated with human genetic diversity; this is illustrated by certain sheep breeds in northwest England. Studies of the factors giving rise to and maintaining livestock biodiversity are likely to cast light on the development of human culture

Body dimensions of Nigerian cattle, sheep and goats

A comparative study of body dimensions of indigenous cattle, sheep and goats. One hundred and thirty-six multiparous cows, 63 goats and 71 sheep were measured in breeding flocks and herds in Nigeria. The humped cattle breeds are large-bodied; humpless Kuri are narrow-bodied and tall in relation to their length when compared with British breeds. Their pelvic dimensions are small. The sheep and goats native to the coastal and middle belts (the West African Dwarf breeds) are miniature versions of those found in the north. Neither appeared to be achondroplasic but dwarfing had proceeded differently in the two species. The adult West African Dwarf goat is similar in its relative body proportions to the adult Northern goat, implying a proportional miniaturization. The West African Dwarf sheep appeared to be a neotenous form with body proportions similar to those of an immature sheep

Anxiety is associated with freezing of gait and attentional set-shifting in Parkinson’s disease : a new perspective for early intervention

Previous research has shown that anxiety in Parkinson's disease (PD) is associated with freezing of gait (FOG), and may even contribute to the underlying mechanism. However, limited research has investigated whether PD patients with FOG (PD\ua0+\ua0FOG) have higher anxiety levels when compared directly to non-freezing PD patients (PD-NF) and moreover, how anxiety might contribute to FOG. The current study evaluated whether: (i) PD\ua0+\ua0FOG have greater anxiety compared to PD-NF, and (ii) anxiety in PD is related to attentional set-shifting, in order to better understand how anxiety might be contributing to FOG. In addition, we explored whether anxiety levels differed between those PD patients with mild FOG (PD\ua0+\ua0MildFOG) compared to PD-NF. Four hundred and sixty-one patients with PD (231 PD-NF, 180 PD\ua0+\ua0FOG, 50 PD\ua0+\ua0MildFOG) were assessed using the Freezing of Gait Questionnaire item 3 (FOG-Q3), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Digit Span Test, Logical Memory Retention Test and Trail Making Tests. Compared to PD-NF, PD\ua0+\ua0FOG had significantly greater anxiety (p\ua

Number of females in cattle, sheep, pig, goat and horse breeds predicted from a single year's registration data

An objective and accountable method is needed for deducing the number of registered animals in a breed from registration data. By following the principle that individual breeders register sufficient young females to be certain of having enough replacements for their current breeding stock, the ratios were calculated of the number of adult females in a breed to the number of female registrations, in a given year. Number of breeds considered were 8 cattle, 16 sheep, 8 pigs, 1 goat and 2 equines, all in the United Kingdom or Ireland. This yielded multipliers (4.4 for cattle, 3.3 for sheep, 3.1 for pigs, with confidence limits; and a point estimate of 5.2 for goats) enabling total adult female population to be predicted from a single year's registration data. There was considerable variation between breeds in values of the multiplier, apparently for reasons of breed history and function. This was particularly evident for equines where the two breeds yielded multipliers of 3.8 and 13.9. Multipliers, using registration data that are already in the public domain, can provide an estimate of breed numerical size, which a breed society can either accept or replace with an audited census

Hormonal and physiological effects of a 15 hour road journey in sheep: comparison with the responses to loading, handling and penning in the absence of transport

A controlled study was carried out to investigate the physiological effects of road transport on sheep. Animals (n=10, body weight 38.9+/-1.3 kg), previously with catheters in their jugular veins, were rounded up and loaded onto a vehicle where they wereheld in a communal pen with eight other lambs. Blood samples were taken at 30 min intervals during the next 15 h whilethe vehicle remained stationary or was driven a distance of 548 miles (876 km). Measurements were made of plasma concentrations of cortisol, prolactin, creatine phosphokinase and lactate dehydrogenase isozymes and also of plasma osmolality, haematocrit and body weight; heart rate was also recorded in one animal. Loading and the start of driving produced large increases in cortisol and prolactin concentrations. Heart rate also increased whereas osmolality and haematocrit decreased. The major changes in hormone release occurred in the first 3 h period while, during the remaining 12 h, the stimulatory effect of transport was present but small. Body weight loss was similar under both stationary and driven conditions