Selective Breeding in Animals

• Selective breeding

  Selective breeding, also known as artificial selection, involves selecting parents that have desired characteristics and breeding them in the hope that their offspring will inherit those traits.
• Why do humans do selective breeding?


  • Service - dogs for the blind, dogs for seizures,
  • police & fire dogs, etc. 
  • Entertainment - pets, racing, etc. 
  • Needs riding, hunting, farming, etc. 
  • Food - produce, meat, dairy, etc.
• Examples of Selective Breeding for Animals


  • Popular dog and cat breeds
  • Sheep for their wool
  • Larger chicken &  turkey for meat 
  • Chickens that lay more eggs
  • Larger cows for meat
  • Cows that produce more milk
• Negative Effects- Loss of diversity in animal species


  • A species sometimes loses a variety of traits that helped it survive in nature. They are now domesticated and rely on humans for survival.
  • Makes animal species less able to adapt to disease, environment, and nature.
• Negative Effects - Pure breeding and inbreeding can result in genetic disorders


  • Some breeds of dogs have genetic problems such as deafness (dalmations), hip problems (german shepards), heart disease (golden retriever), etc.
• Negative Effects -  Animal discomfort

   Animal discomfort

  • Turkeys and chickens that are too big may not be able to walk.
  • Dairy cows may be bothered by oversized udders.
  • At birth, large cow breeds have offspring too large to give birth naturally.