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Some animals may display bloody vaginal discharge, often mistaken for menstruation. [3] Many mammals used in commercial agriculture, such as cattle and sheep, may have their estrous cycles artificially controlled with hormonal medications for optimum productivity. [4] [5] The male equivalent, seen primarily in ruminants, is called rut. [2]
Male impalas fighting during the rut or breeding season The rut (from the Latin rugire , meaning "to roar") is the mating season of certain mammals, which includes ruminants such as deer , sheep , camels , goats , pronghorns , bison , giraffes and antelopes , and extends to others such as skunks and elephants .
Another area of research that is growing in importance is the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, mainly methane, from livestock. Ruminants are responsible for contributing the highest emissions out of all types of animals. Many researchers are conducting studies to determine how manipulating sheep diets may help reduce these dangerous ...
Like all ruminants, sheep are members of the order Artiodactyla, the even-toed ungulates. Numbering a little over one billion, domestic sheep are also the most numerous species of sheep. An adult female is referred to as a ewe (/ j uː / yoo), an intact male as a ram, occasionally a tup, a castrated male as a wether, and a young sheep as a lamb.
The mammalian male reproductive system contains two main divisions, the penis and the testicles, the latter of which are where sperm are produced and usually held in a scrotum. [5] In humans, both of these organs are outside the abdominal cavity , but they can be primarily housed within the abdomen in other animals.
Ovis is a genus of mammals, part of the Caprinae subfamily of the ruminant family Bovidae. [1] Its seven highly sociable species are known as sheep or ovines. Domestic sheep are members of the genus, and are thought to be descended from the wild mouflon of central and southwest Asia.
Ruminating animals have various physiological features that enable them to survive in nature. One feature of ruminants is their continuously growing teeth. During grazing, the silica content in forage causes abrasion of the teeth. This is compensated for by continuous tooth growth throughout the ruminant's life, as opposed to humans or other ...
The age at the first oestrus of heifers varies between breeds from 13 to 33 months, but mating at the first oestrus is often infertile and usually deferred until they are 3 years old. Gestation lasts from 281 to 334 days, but most reports give a range between 300 and 320 days. Swamp buffaloes carry their calves for one or two weeks longer than ...