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Sheep have a breeding season (tupping) in the autumn, though some can breed year-round. [1] As a result of the influence of humans on sheep breeding, ewes often produce multiple lambs. This increase in lamb births, both in number and birth weight, may cause problems with delivery and lamb survival, requiring the intervention of shepherds. [2]
Wiltipoll sheep (polled Wiltshire Horn) shed their wool annually in spring to summer and produce lean, heavy lambs. They are a polled breed (no horns) bred for the production of prime lamb. The wool is simply shed and falls to the ground. [2] Due to this process, the energy of the sheep is directed into meat and milk, not wool.
The chicken breeds recognized by the American Poultry Association are listed in the American Standard of Perfection. They are categorized into classes: standard-sized breeds are grouped by type or by place of origin, while bantam breeds are classified according to type or physical characteristics.
Chickens raised intensively for their meat are known as "broilers". Breeds have been developed that can grow to an acceptable carcass size (2 kg or 4 lb 7 oz) in six weeks or less. [ 52 ] Broilers grow so fast, their legs cannot always support their weight and their hearts and respiratory systems may not be able to supply enough oxygen to their ...
This is a collection of lists of mammal gestation period estimated by experts in their fields. The mammals included are only viviparous (marsupials and placentals) as some mammals, which are monotremes (including platypuses and echidnas) lay their eggs. A marsupial has a short gestation period, typically shorter than placental.
The Southdown was traditionally reared for meat and wool. During the day the sheep pastured freely on the downs, and at night they were close-folded in the arable fields of the farmers, where they helped to increase soil fertility. [10] Fleece weights (greasy) are about 2–3.5 kg for ewes, 3.5–5.5 kg for rams.
The ancestral sheep is presumed to have had 60 chromosomes, as in goats (Capra). Mouflon and domestic sheep have 54 chromosomes, with three pairs (1+3, 2+8, 5+11) of ancestral acrocentric chromosomes joined to form bi-armed chromosomes. This is in contrast to the argali and urial, which have 56 and 58 chromosomes respectively.
Normally the egg is incubated outside the body. However, in one recorded case, the egg incubation occurred entirely within a chicken. The chick hatched inside and emerged from its mother without the shell, leading to internal wounds that killed the mother hen. [8] Embryo development remains suspended until the onset of incubation.