Jimmy's Farm & Wildlife Park Jimmy's Farm News 2021

I know that rare breeds can have characteristics that could be of use to farming in the future but I don't think a domestic breed can be compared to a species, after all they were created through breeding once so why can't we recreated them?
 
Ned said:
I know that rare breeds can have characteristics that could be of use to farming in the future but I don't think a domestic breed can be compared to a species, after all they were created through breeding once so why can't we recreated them?
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It's like most animals that are few in numbers small genetic gene pool they are like pandas difficult to breed and only 17 registered licensed stallions and around 50 breeding mares
 
littleRedPanda said:
When Chester Zoos Pallas's cats died, someone commented on their facebook that people should care more about Suffolk Punch horses than wild cat populations o_O
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That weren't me!! I am passionate about British native domestic animals as I am about our exotic animals.
 
demonmoth said:
It's like most animals that are few in numbers small genetic gene pool they are like pandas difficult to breed and only 17 registered licensed stallions and around 50 breeding mares
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They have no ecological role and wouldn't exist if they hadn't been bred in the first place. Unfortunately I have little interest in domestics and struggle to see any point in preserving breeds that we no longer have a use for. I realise there can be a sense of nostalgia around these things but I don't think they can ever been compared to naturally evolved species.
 
littleRedPanda said:
When Chester Zoos Pallas's cats died, someone commented on their facebook that people should care more about Suffolk Punch horses than wild cat populations o_O
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Very stupid and ignorant post. (Not by LRP, but by the Facebook poster). A breed is by definition not a species and therefore does not go extinct.
You would just need to breed it back to the original "blend".
You cannot rebreed a unique species. That is why the Aurochs or Tarpan will never truly be brought back by cross-breeding as the base species is not the same.
The Quagga project has a higher chance of success given they are using same species but they don't seem to breed "true". Maybe it will never happen.
Aaaanyway to get back on track, I agree that I'm not excited by the regular reposts of domestic animal births on this thread.
It would be a bit like me posting every time the rabbits breed in the kid's zoo at London for example.
I think if the TV programme didn't exist the posts would be considerably fewer.
 
demonmoth said:
It's like most animals that are few in numbers small genetic gene pool they are like pandas difficult to breed and only 17 registered licensed stallions and around 50 breeding mares
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But the thing is, they are really NOT like pandas at all. They are just a breed of horse.
This may be a problem for this collection going forward as they are not a zoo as such, just keeping some fairly common exotics, most available to private owners, and therefore not really presenting a case for having any conservation value.
I've enjoyed the TV programme but I have my doubts. It reminds me of Birdworld and the tacked-on Farm and Pet Shop.
 
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GaryA said:
Very stupid and ignorant post. (Not by LRP, but by the Facebook poster). A breed is by definition not a species and therefore does not go extinct.
You would just need to breed it back to the original "blend".
You cannot rebreed a unique species. That is why the Aurochs or Tarpan will never truly be brought back by cross-breeding as the base species is not the same.
The Quagga project has a higher chance of success given they are using same species but they don't seem to breed "true". Maybe it will never happen.
Aaaanyway to get back on track, I agree that I'm not excited by the regular reposts of domestic animal births on this thread.
It would be a bit like me posting every time the rabbits breed in the kid's zoo at London for example.
I think if the TV programme didn't exist the posts would be considerably fewer.
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I definitely agree with you that a wild species holds much more value than a domesticated breed in terms of conservation, particularly for a zoological facility (I'm not looking for traditional farms and ranches to acquire tigers and elephants for breeding, haha), but as someone raised around livestock and still very interested in that world, your statements regarding domesticated breeds are completely off.

Breeds absolutely can and have gone extinct, and the creation of a breed is much, much more involved than putting two and two together and creating something that looks similar to what you're aiming for. You can breed a dog that looks exactly like a German shepherd down to the most minute of details but that animal is not and will never be a German shepherd without the pure genetics of that breed that has been developed over the last nearly 200 years to breed true. What you say about it being impossible to rebreed a species of animals holds entirely true for breeds of animals as well. Both have unique genetics and adaptations that cannot simply be replicated, the best that could occur is a close phenotypical mimic (ie the Quagga project and attempts to breed back an Aurochs mimic).

That said, I understand that domesticated animals aren't everyone's cup of tea. Their breeding leans more/entirely towards historical preservation rather than conservational. I would argue that this history is extremely important to maintain and just as worthy of protecting as any other museum collection, but I wouldn't call it conservation, which is typically the primary aim of a zoological facility (and therefore the primary interest of members of this forum).

Edit: Additionally, the facility is Jimmy's Farm... The entire original concept of the facility was the preservation of rare breeds. I personally don't mind the livestock updates :D
 
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Since I started this one rolling perhaps I should explain my thinking.
Firstly, I'm very interested in breeds of domestic livestock. I was for many years a member of the Rare Breeds Survival Trust and have also been a member of the Gloucester Cattle Society.
But this is the zoochat forum and, while I see no reason why the occasional breeding of domestic animals within zoos shouldn't be mentioned, I just find the reporting of a pony death or the arrival of piglets at a farm prompting remarks that it's "awesome" or "brilliant" rather over the top.
But, each to their own.
 
I too follow "Jimmy's Farm" on social media and like to keep up to date with all their news however @SHAVINGTONZOO is correct in that we maybe on here just keep it to the exotic species.
 
GaryA said:
But the thing is, they are really NOT like pandas at all. They are just a breed of horse.
This may be a problem for this collection going forward as they are not a zoo as such, just keeping some fairly common exotics, most available to private owners, and therefore not really presenting a case for having any conservation value.
I've enjoyed the TV programme but I have my doubts. It reminds me of Birdworld and the tacked-on Farm and Pet Shop.
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Again further to my previous post this species doesn't need to be mentioned on here. However @GaryA your comments about "just being a breed of horse" is insensitive and disrespectful to those who are trying to preserve the species.
 
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