ox

ox

The bull / bull or ox (Bos taurus), along with a female, the cow and the young form of the species, called calf, form the cattle, a term which, in a broad sense, gives its name to mammals, ruminants, artiodáctilos with pair of unbranched horns, hollow and permanent, of the genus Bos, which include varieties domesticated by man.

Terminology

The ox is the male of the species "Bos taurus" (Bovidae family), and also used in the vernacular name of the individual belonging to cattle.

The cow is the female of this species and the bull is the male with reproductive fitness (uncastrated). It is a mammal, and artiodactyl ruminant. Their horns are different because horns are bony, do not have skin like the horns are wide, hollow, unbranched and permanent.

subspecies

It has two subspecies, namely Bos taurus (taurine cattle of European origin) and Bos indicus (zebu cattle, of Asian origin). The crosses between individuals of both divisions is common both in breeding programs for livestock, as in properties where the ride is natural and without any control. These hybrids are widely used to match the productivity of taurine cattle with the hardiness and adaptability to tropical means of zebu cattle

history

Domestic cattle descended from aurochs in Europe and gaur in Asia. Their domestication began more than 5 000 and 6000 years ago. The domesticated cattle had several service roads for humans: as pack animals (as well as goat and horses) and the production of milk and meat in life / leather after death. livestock for food was unusual, the meat of the animal was consumed only if he died or did not have more utilities.

Today, cattle are the main extras in the meat production industry. The meat production chain is in many lines of business, departing from the manufacture of feed and of qualified vocational education (veterinarians, animal scientists and agronomists) to the consulting companies in foreign trade systems.

In Brazil, the cattle started as soon as the first sugar mills were established in the first half of the sixteenth century. They served to supply milk and meat people that were established in the area of ​​influence of each device. Since grazing areas for livestock competed with the cane plantations, farmers were increasingly heading inland. Along the way were being established small settlements which later became towns and cities.