Breeding Farm Animals

Geese usually lay their eggs in August and September, but some breeds lay eggs year round. They lay 12 to 15 eggs at a time, usually in nest boxes, if you provide them. Collecting goose eggs can...

A cow and calf should not be reunited following the weaning process until the cow has stopped lactating--a process that usually takes 30 days but varies according to species.

The Texas Longhorn is one of the most recognizable cattle breeds in America, marked by their sinister expressions and long cattle horns. The longhorn has been traced back to a mix of Spanish and...

Homemade duck incubators are commonly designed from recycling old appliances, such as refrigerators, grills and pie safes into the frame of the incubator. The primary components include shelves...

Female pigs have a short 112- to 115-day gestation period, and because of their naturally large size, it can be difficult to tell if a sow is pregnant, especially if the litter she's carrying is...

A young female hog, called a gilt, can be bred (serviced) as young as 8 to 10 months of age. This is true for all methods of breeding, including hand mating, pen mating, pasture mating, artificial...

Bull semen from almost anywhere can be frozen, shipped and inserted into your cow. Cattlemen, beef and dairy, use artificial insemination to improve the quality of their herd. Analyzing the...

A cow's gestation period lasts approximately 280 days, according to pettalk.com. In a little over nine months, the fetal cow grows from two cells to the soon-to-be full-sized calf.

In the United States alone, approximately 27 billion pounds of beef are produced per year. Beef production starts at the cow-calf stage. The cycle from breeding to calving to slaughter takes about...

The signs of imminent labor in animals are basically the same as in humans. Animals normally go through a nesting phase, where they are looking for a place to have their young, and they experience...

Sexing ducks is important to farmers and breeders, whether they are raising ducks for food or pets. Ducks being raised for food must be sexed so farmers know which ducks will produce eggs and...

Most folks who raise laying hens start their flocks with day-old chicks from a hatchery. This allows them to avoid the expense and hassle of raising unwanted males. As the price of chicken meat...

Cattle are among the most important animals utilized by humans. Cattle provide meat, milk, cheese, butter, cream and leather, clothing to those who keep them, as well as those who never have seen...

In the wild, an emu will incubate and hatch its own eggs, sitting on and guarding them. They will do the same on your farm, as well --- but you can also remove the eggs and incubate them...

Many people raise quail, whether for eggs, meat, or breeding. Though quail and their eggs are smaller than chickens, their laying patterns are actually similar.

For fertile bird or reptile eggs to hatch, conditions must be optimal. These conditions include a constant, appropriate temperature and steady humidity. Properly built incubators provide these...

Abstain from sexual activity for two to four days leading up to testing. This will reasonably ensure the man is receptive to sexual stimulation and will not have a depleted sample as a result of...

You can hatch fertile chicken eggs and other types of eggs at home in an incubator. You need an incubator to carefully control the conditions for the eggs. The temperature and humidity must be...

There are several different methods by which it can be determined whether or not a cow or a heifer is pregnant. Verifying pregnancy in a cow allows for proper veterinary care to be prescribed....

Proper storage of eggs that will be set or incubated is important to ensure the highest fertility rate and hatching success.

One of the fastest growing food demands our planet faces is for fish. Available at nearly every restaurant, fish are a staple item in many peoples' diet. Though the oceans are full of life, and...

There are many types of donkeys. Each has a particular feature to them that makes it unique. Donkeys have been widely known through the years as being great animals for transporting people and...

Cows give birth and suckle live young like other mammals, usually one calf at a time although twin births occasionally occur. A healthy cow with good nutrition in pregnancy can usually birth her...

Kidding season is an exciting time. Having a kidding kit prepared ahead of time can make the kidding go more smoothly.

Male and female goats should be kept separate until you are ready to breed them. You will then be able to watch for symptoms of pregnancy so that you will know if your breeding sessions were...

The female goat, also called a doe, is pregnant for an average of 150 days. This is called the gestation period. To track the stages of pregnancy and accurately predict the due date, it is...

As the zygote matures, it goes through a series of rapid divisions known as cleavage. The zygote does not put on any additional mass nor does it increase or decrease in size during this period. ...

Homemade chicken incubators can be used to hatch eggs as a science experiment, or to hatch eggs to increase the number of chickens you raise for the table. You can make a homemade chicken...

Chick embryos need proper heat, moisture and physical movement of the eggs in order to survive to hatching. During its 21 days of incubation, the chick will grow from the size of a pinhead to 1.5 oz.

People see duck eggs at different stages---some infertile, bearing no duckling inside; some cracked and open on the ground; and some from poor-at-brooding mothers just waiting to be hatched....

The gestation period for cattle varies, but usually lasts 276 to 283 days. Calf gender, age, breeds, and multiples are among factors affecting gestation length. Getting cows pregnant once a year...

Artificial insemination (A.I.) is a fast growing practice on farms big and small. The semen of a bull is extracted and stored in tubes called "straws." One straw is enough to breed one cow. Straws...

Angus cattle are known for efficient growth, strong maternal instincts and certified beef, characteristics that have helped make the breed the most popular in America. More cattle are recorded...

Making sure your cow is in estrus, or "in heat," is the first and most important step when breeding cattle by artificial insemination. Although there are some behavioral cues to indicate that a...

The first person to use artificial insemination (AI) successfully in cattle appears to have been E.I. Ivanoff, a Russian scientist, around 1900. Russia was the first country to use AI in cows; in...

Black Angus cattle are a popular choice for beef ranchers due to their fast growth and great temperaments. Black Angus are well-known for passing their traits to other breeds when crossed with...

Artificial insemination (A.I.) is a common method used to breed cattle. The process involves taking semen collected from a bull and depositing it in a cow. The primary advantage of A.I. is it...

Artificial insemination (AI) is a common method of breeding cattle. Semen is collected from a bull, placed into straws, and, if necessary, frozen for storage using liquid nitrogen. When the...

Hoof and mouth disease is a viral illness that affects all cloven-footed animals such as sheep, pigs, deer, goats and cattle. Horses and humans are not susceptible to hoof and mouth disease, but...

Whether you plan on incubating goose eggs yourself or letting the female goose hatch them, it is important to know if the egg is fertilized. If you are incubating the eggs yourself, obviously you...

If you are trying to determine if a goose egg is alive, you will need to candle it. In order to candle an egg, you need a dark room and a flashlight. For best results, use a strong flashlight with...

Homemade incubators can be built with a wooden or cardboard box. Before Styrofoam incubators came on the market, farmers would hatch their eggs using what they had around, usually just a cardboard...

Typically, farm heifers become pregnant in one of two ways: by artificial insemination or by being "serviced" by a bull. It is then essential that the heifer's condition (pregnant or not pregnant)...

Determining if your female rabbit (doe) is pregnant can be difficult. There are some signs to look out for that may suggest pregnancy, but even then there's no guarantee of pregnancy. Expert...

The full incubation period for an egg, from laying to hatching, is 20 to 21 days. During this time, a hen sits on her egg(s) and maintains a temperature of around 100 degrees Fahrenheit. This...

Bison need a great deal of grazing area to feed upon and roam around. It is essential that they have a large paddock to run around in, with adequate space for dust baths and exercise. If bison...

Free chicken coop blueprints can be just what you need to construct your chicken coop without wasting a lot of effort making something that isn't sturdy or safe for your chickens. When you look...

Reading this article you will learn how to tell the difference between the male and female brown coturnix quail. You will need to know the difference between males and females for good...

There are many reasons to order baby chicks or ducks online, as opposed to purchasing them at your local feed store. Online chick ordering has a larger variety of breeds, including specialty...

Chickens come in many types. Once you have decided to raise poultry, you will have to pick a breed or two to try. If you know a little about the various, different breeds the decision will be...