How to raise Backyard Chickens: Re: [CHICKENS-101] Re: Organic plants (OT, truthfully!) [1 Attachment]

[Attachment(s) from Deb and Randy Buckler included below]

A perfect example of this is the mule. You can cross a horse with a donkey and get a mule, but mules are not fertile. Yes, OCCASIONALLY there's a fertile mule, but normally not. It's like God stepped in and said...OK, no more of THAT! Hee!

I'm a horse person and our vet pointed out how horses are evolving from being a prey animal. They don't HAVE to be able to see behind them to watch for predators. Horses eyes are slowly moving from the SIDES of their heads, to the front of their face since humans need them to jump or deal with cattle. Sorry to go even MORE off topic here! But here's a picture of a Quarter Horse with his eyes more to the front of his face. I'm sure the most successful horse athletes are ones with the eyes more forward, so they are the ones being bred. Perhaps this is a form of 'genetic engineering'.

Deb

----- Original Message -----

From: Stuart Perkins

To: CHICKENS-101@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Sunday, August 29, 2010 11:01 AM

Subject: Re: [CHICKENS-101] Re: Organic plants (OT, truthfully!)

Breeding certain characteristics by selective procreation is perfectly
acceptable, and natural. It is in a way a form of "Genetic
Engineering", but the methods used to arrive at the genetic combinations
is natural. Breeds which breed true are "natural" even if arrived at by
man's selective breeding of particular animals. Sustainable, fertile
strains of animals and plants is the only way to long term survival.
Other tinkering with the genetics is, in my opinion, playing God. As
such, it is fraught with uncertainty, and risk.

Of course, even breeding in characteristics can prove risky as with the
honey bee.

The closer to nature we can get, the better off we are.