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The genetics behind behaviour

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Wolves have been attacking cattle in North Thompson, an area north of Kamloops, B.C. Brenda Jones, who ranches in the area, reports maimed and dead cattle. Jones says that even uninjured animals are stressed, and calves aren’t gaining as much weight as they should. Her experience is all too common. There is no separating agriculture from nature, and predators are a part of nature.

Does domestication render animals more vulnerable to predators at a genetic level?  And can producers select animals that defend themselves against predators, yet allow themselves to be easily handled by humans? A paper written by Temple Grandin and Mark J. Deesing provides some insight into these questions.

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