Animal Science as Agriculture

Science is n the study or theoretical explanation of natural phenomena. n During this time of study we are investigating the laws of nature, her principles and reasons

Agriculture n Oldest and most important of all sciences

Without an understanding of agriculture n all humans would be struggling for survival

Most of our comforts come as a direct result of science. n shelter n food n clothing

Early people ate fruits, nuts and other seeds. n They were migratory hunters n The idea of domestication came about and people began to settle down

People began to pay close attention to details n and from these details n drew conclusions on where to locate and harvest their food.

Progressive scientific research n in the U.S. began in the mid 1800s at universities. n The universities were only teaching the classics such as Latin and Greek, History, Math and Philosophy

Soon they realized n that they should include more practical hands on subject areas in their curriculum.

1862 Senator Morrill from Vermont n pushed for a bill through the U.S. Congress that would provide public land and funds for colleges that would teach practical methods of manufacturing and food production

The bill was signed by President Lincoln n and the Land Grant or Morrill Act was passed into law.

1862 n A bill was passed which started the USDA n United States Department of Agriculture

Hatch Act n With the growing interest in agriculture, the government decided to put the new ideas for agricultural practices to work.

Hatch Act n This act set up the Experiment Stations run by the universities

Smith Lever n Set up Cooperative Extension Service n (Extension Agent, 4-H)

Land Grant System n composed of universities, experiment stations, and cooperative extension service.

Land Grant System n Universities conduct the research, methods tested at experiment stations, brought to public by extension.

1917- Smith Hughes n established funding for vocational agriculture education programs in high schools.

Scientific Method n systematic method of gaining knowledge through experimentation n assures that results did not occur just by chance and that something actually did cause the change.

The Scientific Method n Recognize a Problem n Develop a Hypothesis n Do an experiment n Collect the Data n Analyze Data n Draw a conclusion

and n make a recommendation

Identify the problem to be solved n an idea of the cause may already be present

form a hypothesis n an educated guess n this is a guess of what causes or might be causing the problem

conduct the experiment n experiment should test the hypothesis

Two groups to every experiment n control - is constant in everything except the thing being tested

experiment - n contains everything that the control group does, but also contains the variable being tested

Two types of research n basic - looks at why or how processes occur in animals n applied - uses the discoveries made in basic research to help in a practical manner.

Where Search Has Led Us n Agriculture, besides medicine, is the application of almost all the research and knowledge associated with plants and animals

basic research n has benefited us the most by allowing us to produce high quality protein food very efficiently

Research n Here is a list of achievements accomplished since 1925 better control of parasites and diseases and an end product that is higher is protein better control of parasites and diseases and an end product that is higher is protein

productivity and efficiency –of all species has increased broilers are ready for market in 7.5 weeks after only 2lbs of feed and it used to take 4lbs of feed and 15 weeks

Research W The countries in North and Central America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand have only 29.9%of the worlds cattle yet produce nearly 68% of the worlds beef and veal

these are also the countries n in which nearly all of the scientific knowledge about the growing of these animals has been discovered

Milestones n That Revolutionized Agriculture n 1. Animal immunization –late 1800s disease began to devastate all types of animals –Louis Pasteur developed first method of vaccinating animals to develop immunity ( s)

serum developed n to fight anthrax from the blood of sheep that had survived a bout with the disease

serum tested in two groups n group 1 - infected with the serum and later infected with anthrax

group 2: n infected with just anthrax group 1 lived and n group 2 died

Vaccines for other diseases n Using Pasteurs guidelines other scientists developed vaccines for other diseases

animals raised in n a disease free environment can be raised more efficiently and at a much lower cost

2. Refrigeration –there was a huge need for meat preservation –meat would spoil quickly n in the winter meat would freeze solid until the spring

meat preservative methods n salt n drying n keeping meat in a cool stream

Problems –Problems with this was that meat was less palatable and these methods were very time consuming

today n we have freezers and refrigerators which utilize chemicals and compressors to condition the air and keep it cool

first attempt n of meat cooling was done with huge blocks of ice being hung from the ceilings of dark rooms

Refrigerated box cars n were developed a few years later

Artificial insemination –advancements in animals produced are achieved through the transfer of superior genes from parent to the offspring

A.I. Was developed n in the 1930s and allowed for greater and more controllable transfer of genes from superior sires

A.I. Is widely available n this is most prevalent in dairy animals

4. Embryo transfer n allows for genes of superior dams to be more widely used

combining ET and AI n allows producers to make rapid gains in the quality of their herds in short amounts of time at relatively low cost

5. Use of computers –first computer was developed in the 1940s and became an integral part of agriculture in the 1980s –as research moves more swiftly computers allow us to analyze information in seconds instead of weeks

And –allows us to do simulated experiments plus numerous other things –ag uses n progeny records n production records

Ag Uses n feed records n accounting records n much more

Animals Effect on Everyday Life n lives of humans have been greatly enhanced through pharmaceuticals developed from animal by-products n many routinely prescribed drugs are derived from animals

cortisone: n was originally made from the gall bladder of cows and

And –can be made synthetically –insulin: comes from the pancreas of pigs (best match) also now made synthetically –many hormones used in treating humans

Effects on Everyday Life n animal parts can be used as replacements for humans

heart valves: n have been used for more than twenty years from pigs in humans

pig skin n is used in treating burn patients (laid over the burnt area until new skin grows naturally

Effects on Everyday Life n the rest of the world can not come close to competing with the US agriculture

our research n combined with the free enterprise system has made us #1 in the world in agricultural production