Animal Production

Seyrani Koncagül, Ph.D.

Ankara University
Departmen of Animal Science
Ankara
2021
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION
Offspring : an individual’s child or childeren

Puberty: when female and male animals first start to produce gametic
cells, eggs and sperms, respectively.

Puberty age : the age at which puberty is first observed.

Gamete : male and female reproductive cells (sperm and egg)

Copulation : mating of a male and an female

Fertilization : the fusion of the male gamete and the female gamete to the
embryonic state of the egg.

Parturition : the act of giving birth

ANIMAL REPRODUCTION
Bull : mature male cattle with reproductive capacity

Cow : mature female cattle that gave birth to calve(s)

Heifer : female cattle that has not give birth to calve(s), some breeders
also call the female cattle that gave birth for the first time.

Scrotum : in most male mammals, a bag of skin near

the penis that contains the testicles

Sterile : (of a living being) unable to produce live gametic cells (egg or
sperm)

Rooster : mature male chicken with reproductive ability

Hen : mature female chicken with reproductive ability

ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

When organisms multiply, or produce offspring, its called

reproduction.

Reproduction may be sexual or asexual.

Sexual reproduction involves the union of a male and a female

gamete.

All of the common farm animals reproduce by sexual

reproduction.

Asexual reproduction does not involve the gametes. Simple cell

division in bacteria is an example of asexual reproduction.
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

Sexual reproduction

 Begins with the mating of the male and female. This is called
copulation.

 The male gamete (sperm) is placed in the reproductive tract of

the female. The sperm moves towards the egg cell.

 Fertilization occurs when the sperm penetrates the egg cell.

 The new animal, called the embryo, begins to grow. It is fed

and protected in the female reproductive tract until it is born.

 Parturition, the act of giving birth, is the final step in

reproduction.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Male Reproductive System (Mammals)

The male has special organs for
reproduction. The reproductive organs of
the bull look like on the picture. The
reproductive organs of the other male
mammals are somewhat similar to those
of the bull.
The scrotum is the saclike part of the
male reproductive system outside the
body cavity that contains the testicales
and epididymis. The three types of tissue
that are found in the wall of the scrotum
are (from exterior to interior):
- skin,
- tunica dartos,
- tunica vaginalis.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Male Reproductive System (Mammals)

The tunica vaginalis forms the
pocket that holds the testicles after
they descend from the abdominal
cavity. This decent normally occurs
about the time the animal is born.

The tunica dartos consists of muscle

tissue that raises or lowers the
testicles in response to the ambient
temperature. During cold weather this
muscle contracts, raising the testicles
closer to the body, and during hot
weather it relaxes, allowing the
teticles to hang further from the
animal’s body.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Male Reproductive System (Mammals)

The tunica dartos

The temperature in the scrotum is

slightly below the body temperature
of the animal, allowing
spermatogenesis to occurs.
Spermatogenesis cannot occurs at
body temperature: it is reduced if
the ambient temperature is high,
producing temporary reduction in
fertility.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Male Reproductive System (Mammals)

If the testicles of an animal are held in
the body cavity, the animal is sterile, or
cannot produce live sperm. A ridgeling
or ridgel is a male in which one or both
testicles are held in the body cavitiy.
This is also called cryptorchidism, and is
a inherited trait.

The animal usually sterile if both

testicles are in the body cavity. If one
testicles retained in the body cavity and
the other descends in to the scrotum,
animal will be fertile. An animal with
cryptorchidism (one or both testicles
retained in the body cavity) should not
be used for breeding.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Male Reproductive System (Mammals)

The testicles produce the sperm

cells and the male hormone
(testosterone).

The sperm cells:

produced by the seminiferous
tubules in the testicles

Testosterone:
produced by the interstitial cells
that surround the seminiferous
tubules

The interstitial cells = Leyding

cells.
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Male Reproductive System (Mammals)

The presence of testosterone

maintains the masculine
appearance of the animal.

Castrated male at an early age

does not develope the typical
masculine appearance and the
reproductive organs do not
continue to develop.

When adult male is castrated, the

reproductive organs diminish in
size and lose some of thier
functions.
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Male Reproductive System (Mammals)

The epididymis is a long, coiled

tube that is connected to each
testicles.

Sperm cells are stored in the

epididymis while their mature.

Sperm cells that are not moved

out of the epididymis by
ejaculation during copulation are
eventually reabsorbed by the
body.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Male Reproductive System (Mammals)

The vas deferens:

a tube that connects the epididymis

with the urethra. Sperm cells move
through the vas deferens to the
urethra. The vas deferens is inside a
protective sheath called the spermatic
cord.

The urethra is the tube that carries

urine from the bladder. This tube is
found in both male and female
mammals. In the male animal both
semen and urine move through the
urethra to the end of the penis.
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Male Reproductive System (Mammals)

The urine:
the liquid waste in the bladder.
The semen contains the sperm
and other fluids that come from
accessory glands.

The three accessory glands:

- the seminal vesicles,
- the prostate gland
- Cowper’s gland.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Male Reproductive System (Mammals)

The seminal vesicles open in to the

urethra. produce a fluid that protects and
transports the sperm.

The prostate gland is near the urethra and

the bladder. It produces a fluid that is
mixed with the seminal fluid.

Cowper’s gland produces a fluid that

moves down to the urethra ahead of
seminal fluid. This fluid cleans and
neutralizes the urethra. This helps protect
the sperm as they move through the
urethra. The mixture of the seminal and
prostate fluid and the sperm is called
semen.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Male Reproductive System (Mammals)

The penis deposites semen within the
female reproductive system.

The urethra in the penis is surrounded

by spongy tissue (cavernosum) that
fills with blood when the male is
sexually eroused: this couses an
erection that is necessary for
copulation to occur.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Male Reproductive System (Mammals)

The sigmoid flexture (found in bulls,
rams, and boars) and the retractor
muscle extend the penis from the
sheath, a tubular fold of skin. After
copulation, the blood pressure in the
penis subsides and the retractor
muscle helps draw the penis back in
to the sheath.

Horses and other mammals do not

have a sigmoid flexture: erection is
caused by the blood that fills the
cavernosum when sexual arousal
occurs
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Male Reproductive System (Poultry)

The reproductive system of the
male chicken is shown at right.

The testicles (held within the

body cavity) produces
- the sperm and
- seminal fluid.
The vas deferens carries the
seminal fluid and sperm cells to
cloaca.

The cloaca is the enlarged part

where the larger intestine joins
the end of the alimentary canal.
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Male Reproductive System (Poultry)

The alimentary canal is the food-
carrying passage that begins at the
mouth and ends at the vent.

The papilla is the organ in the

wall of the cloaca that puts the
sperm cells into the hen’s
reproductive tract.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Female Reproductive System (Mammals)

The female also has special organs for
reproduction. They are very different from
the male reproductive system. The female
produces sex cells in the form of eggs or
ova (singular, ovum).

The female must also provide the place for

the fetus to grow. The fetus is the unborn
animal in the later stages of its
developement. In the early stages of the
developement it is called the embryo.

The reproductive system of a cow is

shown at top right and the dorsal view of
the female reproductive system is also
shown at bottom right
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Female Reproductive System (Mammals)

Female farm mammals are two
ovaries that produce the ova and
two female sex hormones (estrogen
and progestorone.

There are hundreds of tiny follicles

(cavities) on each ovary. In cows,
follicles are size of the head of a
pin.

The ova are produced in the

follicles. The ovaries also form the
corpora lutea (singular corpus
luteum). The function of the corpus
luteum is going to be discussed
later in this section.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Female Reproductive System (Mammals)

The oviducts (ovidakt) are two tubes that
carry the ova from ovaries to the uterus.
The oviducts are also called teh Fallopian
tubes. The oviducts are close, but not
attached to the ovaries. The funnel-shaped
end of each oviduct that is close to the
ovary is called infundibulum.

At ovulation, the follicle ruptures,

releasing an ovum that is cought by the
infundibulum. After copulation, sperm
move through the uterus to the oviduct.
Fertilization of ovum occurs in the upper
end of the oviduct. The zygote moves to
the uterus about two to four days after
fertilization.
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Female Reproductive System (Mammals)

The uterus of mammals is a Y-shaped
structure consisting of:
- the body,
- two uterine horns
- the cervix.

The size and the shape of the uterus

varies among the various species of
farm animals.

The upper part of the uterus consists

of two uterine horns that develope
into the oviduct or Fallopian tubes.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Female Reproductive System (Mammals)

Mammals:

those that normally produce litters

(more than three offspring at one birth),
such as swine or rabbit have relatively
large horns and a small body:

those that normally produce single

offspring or twins, such as cattle and
sheep, have smaller horns and a larger
body.

In all of these species, pregnancy

normally occurs in the uterine horns, in
horses pregnancy normally occurs in the
body of the uterus.
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Female Reproductive System (Mammals)

In all species of farm animals:

the fetus grows within the uterus,

where it remains until parturition.

The cervix is the lower outlet of the

uterus and relatively relaxed during
esrtrus to allow the passage of sperm
into the uterus.

During pregnancy cervix remains

tightly closed to block the entrance
of any foreign matter in to the uterus.
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Female Reproductive System (Mammals)

The vagina is the passage between
the cervix and the vulva. The lining
of the vagina is moist during estrus
and dry when the animal is not in
estrus. The vagina expands to allow
the fetus to pass through at birth.

The bladder collects the liquid

waste, which is called urine. The
urine passes through the urethra to
the vagina.

The urethra attaches to the floor of

the vagina between the cervix and
the vulva. It is not a part of
reproductive tarct in females.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Female Reproductive System (Mammals)

The vulva is external opening of the
reproductive and urinary systems.

The exterior, and visible part of the vulva,

consists of two folds called the labia
majora.

The labia minora are two folds located just

inside the labia majora.

Also located just inside the vulva is the

clitoris, the sensory and erctile organ of
the female. The clitoris developes from the
same embryonic tissue as the penis in the
male and produces sexual stimulation
during copulation.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Female Reproductive System (Poultry)

The reproductive system and
some fuctions of the female
chicken are shown at right.

The chickens have two

ovaries and two oviducts.
The right ovary and oviduct
do not function. The only the
left ovary and the oviduct
produce eggs.

The ova produced in the

ovary develope into egg yolk.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Female Reproductive System (Poultry)

The oviduct of the chicken has
five parts.
- Ovary
- Oviduct
- Uterus
- Vagina
- Cloaca
The funnel (infindibulum)
receives the yolk from the
ovary.

The sperm cells that the

chicken receives from the
rooster (male mature chicken)
are stored here.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Female Reproductive System (Poultry)

The magnum secretes the
thick white of the egg. It
takes about three hours for
the thick white placed around
the yolk in the magnum.

The yolk and the thick white

next moves to the isthmus,
where two shell membranes
are added.

It takes about 1¼ hours for

the shell membranes to be
placed around the yolk and
the thick white.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Female Reproductive System (Poultry)

The thin white and the outher
shell are added to the egg in
the uterus.

The egg remains in the uterus

about 20 hours.

After the egg is completed, it

moves to vagina, where it
stays here for a short time,
and then is laid.

It takes about 25 to 27 hours

for a chicken to produce one
egg.
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Estrus Cycle
The estrus or heat period:

is the time during which the

female will accept the male for
copulation or breeding.

The female mammals begins to

have estrus periods when it is old
enough to be bred (puberty).

The estrus cycle begins when a

follicle on the ovary beging to
develop. The hormone estrogen is
produced, and causes the animal to
show the signs of estrus.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Estrus Cycle
The Signs of Estrus in Cattle
- Standing when mounted by another cow (best indicator
for time to breed)
- Trying to mount other cattle (cattle not in estrus may do
this)
- Nervousness
- Swelling of the vulva
- Inflamed appearance around the lips of the vulva
- Frequent urination
- Muscus discharge from the vulva
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Estrus Cycle
The Signs of Estrus in Swine

- Frequent mounting of other sows

- Restless activity

- Swelling of the vulva

- Discharge from the vulva

- Frequent urination

- Occasional loud grunting

 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Estrus Cycle
The Signs of Estrus in Goat
- Nervousness
- Shaking the tail
- Riding other animals and standing when
ridden
- Frequent urination
- Swelling and red appearance of the vulva
- Muscus discharge from the vulva
- Bleating

Dairy goats and Angora goat are

seasonal breeders just as sheep are.
Spanish goats will breed the year
around.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Estrus Cycle
The Signs of Estrus in Horses
- Raised tail
- Relaxation of the vulva
- Frequent urination
- Teasing of other mares
- Apparent desire for company of other horses

Horses are partially seasonal in

their breeding habits. The
breeding season for horses is
generally March through May.
They have an irregular estrus
cycle in the fall and early
winter.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Estrus Cycle
The Signs of Estrus in Sheep

The sheep do not show any visible sign of estrus.

The only way to tell if the ewe is in estrus is if she
accepts the ram.

A teaser ram with an apron to prevent breeding is

sometime used to see if the ewe is in estrus. The
apron prevents the ram from completing the act of
copulation when mounting the ewe.

Flehmen reaction
Teaser Ram
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Estrus Cycle
The Signs of Estrus in Sheep

Most sheep have seasonal estrus periods. They come in to estrus only in the fall. Dorset and
Tunis sheep, however, come into estrus the year around.

Seasonal estrus in sheep seems to be the result of the shorted hours of the daylight and the
cooler temperatutes in the fall.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Ovulation
Ovulation is the release of egg cell from the ovary. The time of ovulation is usually near the
end of the estrus period. Some animals ovulate after estrus period ends.
Before ovulation, the egg cell is contained in the follicles. The follicles breaks open,
releasing the egg.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Ovulation
The egg moves into one of the oviducts.
If live sperm are present, the egg may be fertilized.
Shortly after ovulation, the corpus luteum forms on the ovary. It releases the hormone
progesterone
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Ovulation
This hormone (progesterone) causes to four thinks to happen:
- The fertilized egg (embryo) is implanted in the uterus
- Other eggs are stopped from forming
- The pregnant condition is maintained
- The mamary glands begin to develop. The mamary gland produce the
milk to feed the young when they are born
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Ovulation
If the egg is not fertilized, the
corpus luteum does not grow.

It atrophies, or wastes away.

This allows another follicle to

grow and other estrus period
to occur.

The time between estrus

periods is the amount of time
it takes for this to happen.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Ovulation
Animals that have several young at one birth release more
than one egg at ovulation.

These offsprings are said to be fraternally related. They each

come from a different egg cell.

Sometime one egg cell divides to form two animals. These

two animals are identical.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Fertilization
Fertilization is the union of the sperm and the
Egg
egg. During copulation, the male animal
deposits sperm in the reproductive tract of the
Sperms
female.

The sperm move through the reproductive

tract of the female untill they reach to
infundibulum.

If an egg cell is present, a sperm cell may

penetrate it.

Only one sperm cell fertilizes an egg cell.

Many millions of sperm cells are present in
the reproductive tract as a result of mating.
This helps to make sure that at least one
sperm will fertilize the egg cell.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Fertilization
Sperm cell cannot live very long
in the female reproductive tract.

In cattle, for example, sperm cell

live only 24 to 30 hours after
mating occurs.

The egg cell live about 12 hours after it is released if

it is not fertilized.

For fertilization to occur, the animal must be bred to

have the live sperm cells and the egg cell present at
the same time.

If fertilization does not occur, the egg and the sperm

cells are absorbed by the body. The estrus cycle will
repeat itself until the animal does become pregnant.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Gestation
The gestation period is the time during which the
animal is pregnant. During pregnancy the fetus develop
in the uterus. The fetus is surrounded by a watery fluid
enclosed in membranes.

Sheep fetus

Blood vessels in the

umbilical cord supply
nutrients and oxygen and
carry off waste products.
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Gestation
The umbilical cord connects
from the navel of the fetus to
the placenta.

The placenta lies along the

wall of the uterus.

Food, oxygen and waste are

exchanged with the mother
through the plecenta by a
process called diffusion.

Rectal determination of pregnancy becomes more

challenging in mid-gestation because of the location of
the fetus
(Courtesy of Iowa State University)
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Parturation (giving birth)

Parturation is the process of
giving birth to a new animal.

Near the end of the gestation

period, the corpus luteum
reduces the production of
progeterone.

This is an increase in the

amount of estrogen in the body.
This causes the uterine muscles
to conract.

The construction of these

muscles begins the process of
birth.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Parturation (giving birth)

The first water bag (parts of the
membranes that surrounded the fetus)
soon appears.

It gets larger and breaks open. Shortly

thereafter, the second water bag,
which contains the fetus, appears.

The second water bag breaks open and

the presentation of the fetus begins. In
cattle, normal presentation (position of
fetus at birth) is the front feet first.

This followed by the nose. Then the

head, shoulder, middle, hips, rare legs
and feet appear.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Parturation (giving birth)

Sometimes the young animal is still enclosed in
the membranes when it is born.

An attandant should be present at the time of

birth to free the animal so that it does not
suffocate if this occurs.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Parturation (giving birth)

The unbilical cord is broken at birth. This causes
the animal to begin breathing.

Because the hormone progesterone had sitimulated

the mammary glands of the mother, she will
normally have milk for the young animal to nurse.

This first milk is called colostrum. It

is rich in antibodies, vitamins, and
minerals that the new born animal
needs.

Antibodies are substances that protect the animal from infections and poisons. It is important
that the new born animal be given cocstrum milk during the first 12 to 24 hours after birth.
After the first day or so, the mother produces regular milk instead of colostrum.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION The afterbirth

 Parturation (giving birth)

Several hours after birth, the afterbirth is
expelled from the uterus.

The afterbirth consists of placenta and

other membranes that are not expelled
earlier than the fetus was born.

If the afterbirth is not expelled, it will decay

inside the uterus, making the animal sick. If the
afterbirth has not been expelled within a few
hours, the help of a veterinarian may be needed.
Care must be taken to prevent infection when
removing the afterbirth from the uterus. The
animal may become sterile if proper care is not
taken when removing the afterbirth.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Parturation (giving birth)

Do not allow the animal to eat the afterbirth.

Remove it from the pen or area and bury it lime or burn it.

This helps prevent odors and the spread of disease.

ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Reproduction in Poultry
Reproduction in poultry is different in some
way from reproduction im mammals.

The young are not carried in the hen’s body

as they are in mammals. Instead, they
develop in the fertilized egg outside of the
hen’s body.

The process begins with the placing of

sperm into the oviduct of female by the
male.

The papilla in the cloacal wall of the male

deposits the sperm in the cloacal wall of the
female.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Reproduction in Poultry
The sperm move up to the oviduct to the
funnel of the oviduct, where the egg is
fertilized.

Sperm cells will remain in the oviduct for 2

to 3 weeks after mating. They have full
fertilizing ability for about 6 days. After that
time, the ability of sperm to fertilize the egg
is decreased.

By the tenth day after mating, the sperm

have about 50% of their firtilizing ability.

The fertilizing ability of the sperm is

reduced to about 15% by the nineteenth day
after mating.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Reproduction in Poultry
After the egg yolk is fertilized, it moves
through the reproductive tract of the
female.

The thick white, shell membranes, thin

white, and the shell are added as it moves
through the tract.

After the egg is laid, the embryo grows

inside the shell.

It must have the right temperature and the

humidity to develop properly. During this
time, the embryo is fed by the contents of
the egg. After incubation, the chicken
hatch, or breaks out of the shell.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Reproduction in Poultry
Incubation of eggs is keeping them at
the right temperature and humidity
for hatching.

An individual hen does this by setting 21 days

on the eggs in the nest. Commercial
hatcheries use machenical incubators
to hatch chickens and other poultry.
The incubation period:
28 days
For chicken is 21 days.
For duck and turkeys it is 28 days.
For geese it is 29 to 31 days.
For Muscovy ducks it is 33 to 35
days.
29-31 days 33-35 days
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Reproduction in Poultry
The temperature in the incubator should be 38.9oC to
39.4oC.

The relative humidity in the incubator should be 60% for

the first 18 days.

It should be increased to 70% during the last 3 days of

incubation.

The eggs are laid vertically or horizontally in the trey. They

should be turn twice daily for the first 15 days. For ducks,
they should be turned for the first 22 days. This keeps the
embryo from sticking to the shell.

The incubator should have a small amount of air moving

through it. This provides fresh oxygen and removes the
carban dioxide that collects in the bottom of the incubator.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Reproductive Failures
The general physical condition
of an animal has an effect on its
ability to reproduce.

An animal that is too fat or too

thin may not become pregnant
when bred.

Proper nutrition and exercise

will help prevent this problem.

Animals in poor physical

condition may have trouble
giving birth.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Reproductive Failures
There are several infections that affect
the reproductive organs of the animal.

Some may prevent pregnancy and other

may cause abortion.

If an unhealty animal does become

pregnant, it may deliver weak young
that may not live.

Infection of the uterus or general poor

health of the animal may cause
difficulty in giving birth.

Lesson on desease of the various species

will discuss many of these infections in
more detail.
 ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Reproductive Failures
The sexual behavior of animal is affected by
the secretion of hormones.

When these hormones are not properly secrete,

the animal may not be able to reproduce.

Sometimes it is necessary to treat the animal

with hormones to overcome this problem.

A cyst is a swelling containing fluid or

semisolid substance. Cyst may occur in the
reproductive organs and cause breeding
problems.

Some cyst can be removed by surgery or

treated with hormones. Not all cyst can be
treated.
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Reproductive Failures
Cryptorchidism may cause
reproductive failure in the male.
This was discussed earlier in this
chapter.

Not all female animals become

pregnant when bred. The reasons for
this reproductive failures are not
always known.
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

 Working Questions

1. Name and briefly describe the parts of the reproductive systems of the bull
and the cow.
2. Name and briefly describe the parts of the reproductive systems of the
male and female chicken.
3. Describe the signs of estrus in each of the following: a) cattle, b) goats, c)
sheep, d) horses
4. Describe the ovulation in mammals
5. Explain how the egg cell is fertilized in mammals
6. Describe what happens during gestation in mammals
7. Describe parturation in mammals
8. Briefly describe the reproduction process in poultry