Comprehensive Animal Production and Welfare: Units 4–5 Study Guide

What type of animal is cattle?

Cattle are ruminants with a four-stomached digestive system capable of digesting fibrous material.

What is the main advantage of cattle's ruminant digestion?

They can digest very fibrous feed that humans cannot and convert it into high-protein meat.

What is hay?

Hay is alfalfa or grass cut, dried, baled, and stored for later feeding.

How does alfalfa hay compare with grass hay?

Alfalfa hay is higher in energy; grass hay is made from grasses.

What is silage?

Silage is cereal crops or corn cut and processed before maturity, stored to maintain moisture and ferment.

What is greenfeed?

Greenfeed is cereal crops cut before maturity, allowed to dry in swaths, then baled.

What are the three major grains named in the lecture?

Oats, barley, and corn.

What percentage of Canadian beef/cattle production is exported each year?

About 45%.

What is cow-calf production?

A beef production system in which cows are maintained to produce calves that are later weaned and moved through the beef production chain.

What is the difference between purebred and commercial beef production?

Purebred production focuses on maintaining/producing specific genetics and registered animals; commercial production focuses on producing cattle for market/end-product performance.

What is dystocia?

Dystocia is difficult calving.

Why is neonatal calf scours important to beef practices?

It is a common neonatal disease/problem and can make spring calving a very busy period for veterinary practices.

What is the typical beef-cattle breeding season?

A defined seasonal breeding period used to coordinate calving and management.

What is BBSE?

BBSE stands for Bull Breeding Soundness Evaluation.

What is embryo transfer?

Embryo transfer is a reproductive technology in which embryos from a donor female are transferred to recipient females.

What is the purpose of a bull breeding soundness evaluation?

To assess whether a bull is suitable for breeding.

What is backgrounding?

Backgrounding is growing/weaning calves before they enter a feedlot, typically developing frame and weight before finishing.

What is a feedlot?

A production system where cattle are intensively fed a high-energy ration to finish them for market.

Why is feedlot health management important?

Cattle are exposed to management and environmental stresses and need monitoring, prevention, treatment, and biosecurity to maintain health.

What does the Canadian dairy industry include?

The chain from animal husbandry, milk production/collection and veal production through processing, dairy products, and butchering for meat.

What percentage of Canadian dairy farms are family-owned and operated?

About 98%.

Why is nutrition especially important in dairy cattle?

The cow must meet maintenance, health, reproduction, and high milk-production demands.

What is the average lactating herd size given for Canadian dairy farms in 2025?

About 107 lactating cows.

What is the lactation curve?

The pattern of milk production across a cow's lactation, with production highest during early lactation and then declining.

When does a dairy cow generally produce the most milk?

During early lactation.

What is embryo transfer used for in dairy production?

To reproduce desirable genetics by transferring embryos from a donor female to recipient females.

What is a close-up/maternity pen?

A housing area used for cows approaching calving and around the maternity period.

What are calf hutches/pens used for?

Housing and caring for calves separately during the early stage of life.

Why is calf care important on a dairy farm?

Early nutrition, health, sanitation, and management strongly affect calf survival, growth, and future productivity.

What is a tie-stall barn?

A barn system where cows are individually restrained/tied at their stalls.

What is a free-stall barn?

A housing system where cows can move freely within the barn and choose individual resting stalls.

What is a herringbone milking parlor?

A parlor where cows stand at an angle to the milking pit.

What is a tandem milking parlor?

A parlor where cows are milked in single-file positions, suited to smaller herds.

What is a rotary milking parlor?

A rotating platform that carries cows through milking positions and is suited to large herds.

What is a robotic milking system?

An automated system in which cows enter a milking unit and are milked by robotic equipment.

What is somatic cell count (SCC) used for in milk quality?

It is an indicator used to assess milk quality and udder health, particularly inflammation/mastitis.

What do bacterial counts indicate in milk?

The bacterial quality/cleanliness of the milk and effectiveness of hygiene and handling.

Name the most common dairy breed in Canada.

Holstein, identified in the lecture as about 93% of the dairy herd.

Name other common Canadian dairy breeds from the lecture.

Jersey, Ayrshire, Guernsey, and Brown Swiss.

Where were horses domesticated?

By nomads in the steppes of Central Asia.

What is Equus caballus?

The horse; 32 pairs of chromosomes.

What is Equus asinus?

The ***/donkey; 31 pairs of chromosomes.

What is a feral horse?

A free-roaming horse of domesticated stock that fends for itself without human assistance.

What is the only truly wild horse alive today according to the lecture?

Przewalski's horse, native to the steppes of Central Asia.

How many chromosome pairs does Przewalski's horse have?

33.

What is Equus hemionus?

The onager/Asiatic wild ***, with 27 chromosomes.

What is notable about the onager population in the lecture?

It is restricted to two protected areas in Iran and has fallen to fewer than 800 due to poaching, drought and grazing competition.

What is the Plains zebra?

Equus berchelli, the most common and geographically widespread zebra species.

Where is the mountain zebra native to?

South-western Angola, Namibia and South Africa.

What is distinctive about Grevy's zebra?

It is the largest living wild equid, the most threatened of the three zebra species, and is loosely social.

Where are Grevy's zebras found?

Kenya and Ethiopia.

What happened to the Suffield horses?

On the sandbar off Nova Scotia.

Where do the Sable Island horses live?

On the sandbar off Nova Scotia.

Where are Sable Island horses found?

On the sandbar off Nova Scotia.

How many horses are estimated worldwide in 2025?

About 60 million horses and 42 million donkeys.

How many Sable Island horses are there currently?

Just over 400.

How many horses are estimated in Canada?

About 500,000, with the highest number in Alberta.

What was the estimated Canadian equine industry economic contribution?

About $8.7 billion and more than 70,000 full-time jobs.

What are the estimated Canadian horse-use percentages?

Recreation 28%; amateur sport 24.5%; working 19%; breeding 14%; professional sport 8%; elite sport 4%; racing 2.5%.

What are common agricultural uses of horses?

Pasture checking, processing and herding.

What are examples of recreational horse activities?

Jumping, dressage, reining and showing.

What are the two main types of horse racing mentioned?

Harness racing with Standardbreds and under-saddle racing with Thoroughbreds.

Why can early racehorse training be a welfare concern?

Many horses start very young, potentially causing injuries to bones, ligaments and tendons during training/racing.

What are examples of rodeo events listed?

Bronc riding, steer wrestling, barrel racing, pole bending, goat tying, calf/steer roping, team roping and breakaway roping.

How are horses used by forest rangers?

Search and rescue and patrolling areas inaccessible to vehicles.

How have horses been used medically?

As a source of antibodies/antitoxins, including historically for tetanus and diphtheria products.

What are PMU barns?

Facilities collecting pregnant mares' urine for hormone replacement therapy products such as Premarin.

How is urine collected from PMU mares?

With a 'boot' placed over the vulva and attached to hoses.

How often are PMU boots removed for exercise?

At least twice per week.

What happens to PMU mares after about 3 months of urine collection?

They return to the herd to finish gestation.

At what age are PMU foals weaned according to the lecture?

4 months.

How is horse height measured?

From solid ground to the highest point of the withers, in hands.

How many inches is one hand?

4 inches.

What is the pony height range given?

9.2-14.2 hands.

What is the light-horse height range?

14.2-17 hands.

What is the draft/heavy-horse height range?

15-19 hands.

What measurements are used in the horse weight formula?

Heart girth and body length.

What is the weight formula in pounds?

(Heart girth × heart girth × body length) ÷ 330.

What weight ranges are given for ponies, light horses and drafts?

Ponies 300-850 lb; light horses 1,000-1,300 lb; drafts 1,600-2,200 lb.

Why are horses called hind-gut fermenters?

They have an enlarged cecum that breaks down grasses and roughage.

What is unusual about the horse stomach?

It is small and suited to frequent/constant grazing.

Do horses have a gall bladder?

No.

Can horses vomit?

No, according to the lecture.

What are the three breeding methods for mares?

Pasture breeding, hand breeding and artificial insemination; embryo transfer is also listed.

What is pasture breeding?

The stallion is placed with mares to breed naturally.

What is hand breeding?

Supervised breeding where people hold/assist the mare and stallion.

Why is a mare teased before hand breeding?

To assess readiness, including intensified interest, urination and discharge.

What is an advantage of artificial insemination?

Fresh or frozen semen can broaden genetic opportunities when transporting the mare to the stallion is not practical.

What are the three basic equine base coat colours?

Bay, chestnut and black.

What are the two basic equine pigment colours?

Black and red.

Which pigment is recessive?

Red.

What distinguishes a black horse?

Solid black body, legs, mane and tail; some fade in sunlight.

What distinguishes chestnut/sorrel?

No black hairs; sorrel is a lighter red and chestnut is darker, potentially liver chestnut.

What is a bay?

Red body with black mane, tail and black points.

What is a true white horse?

A horse born white that remains white, with snow-white hair and pink skin.

What is a grey horse?

A horse whose natural coat progressively depigments with age; it is born another colour.

What is a palomino?

A chestnut/sorrel base modified by a cream dilution gene, typically with a golden body and lighter mane/tail.

What is a buckskin?

A bay with one copy of the cream gene, lightening the body while retaining black points.

What is a dun?

A diluted coat characterized by primitive markings, especially a dorsal stripe.

What is champagne coloration associated with?

A dominant champagne gene, hazel eyes that are blue at birth, and pinkish/freckled skin.