Evaluate Basic External Animal Anatomy and Morphology - AgriSETA

Evaluate Basic External Animal Anatomy and MorphologyPrimary Agriculture NQF Level 1 Unit Standard No: 11617344 Anatomic abnormalities that inhibit farm animals to producenormallyFarmers developed farm animals through the years as highly productiveanimals and it is therefore very important that the animal is healthy inorder to produce.It is important that farm animals are true to the breeding standards of thebreed. Breed standards provide guidelines to farmers indicating the traits,which are important for production. Usually these breed standardsdiscriminate against animals with large visible anatomical abnormalities(such as having 5 legs!). However, breed standards also assist in creatinguniform animals that produce uniform carcasses for market, or uniformquality of product (such as wool or milk). Breed characteristics alsodiscriminate against gross abnormalities, which may have an effect onproduction, such as a goat with an extra teat that gets in the way of thekid suckling from the functional teats. Lifecycle of a sheepSheep are farmed all over the world. Their breeding seasons are usuallydetermined by seasons, but may be manipulated by the farmer.The mother (ewe) is mated to a ram and after approximately 150 days (5months) a single lamb or up to four lambs (depending on the breed) areborn. The mother suckles them on milk secreted from her udder for up to 5months. After approximately 12 to 16 months (depending on the breed)the ewe lambs will reach puberty (puberty - stage were the hormonesbegins the sex cycle in the ewe). At this stage, the lambs can conceive andbreed.ConceptIdentifying the different basicanatomical parts of sheep.Identifying by means of external partsthe class to which the sheep belongs.Identifying and naming the externalvisible divisions or parts of a sheep.Identifying gross abnormalities in theexternal parts of a sheep.Giving reasons for the various steps inthe lifecycle and identifying thevulnerability of the sheep in thedifferent stages.I understandthis conceptQuestions that I still wouldlike to askVersion: 01 Version Date: July 2006