Human beings have interacted with flora and fauna in their shared environment throughout history. These relationships—necessary for food, shelter, and companionship—reflect a deep connection with both living and nonliving elements in our world. Societal progress, however, has altered our interactions with animals, plants, and the environment.

For centuries, native and indigenous populations around the globe interacted with their surroundings as part of their daily live routines to hunt and harvest for nourishment, to celebrate, and to survive. They understood that their actions had major consequences on crops, animals, rivers, and forests.

Animal science is the study of the biology, care, and management of animals, focusing on their health, behavior, nutrition, physiology, and breeding. Animal science has a critical role in One Health, which emphasizes the interconnectedness of human, animal, plant, and environmental health. In this context, animal science helps ensure the well-being of livestock, pets, and wildlife, the maintenance of a safe food supply, and the reduction of zoonotic disease outbreaks, while contributing to environmental sustainability.

In 2023, approximately 48.6 million children aged 0 to 14 lived in Ethiopia (UNICEF Ethiopia Annual Report, 2023). While Ethiopia produces about 12 billion liters of milk annually (Ministry of Agriculture, 2025), this is insufficient to meet the World Health Organization’s (WHO’s) recommendation of 200 kg dairy per person per year, requiring over 9.7 billion liters annually just for children. The current intake is only 11% of this target (Farrell, 2021).

The concept of One Health may be associated with many diverse interpretations in both scope and practice as viewed from a particular frame of reference or perspective. From a general perspective of human and veterinary medicine, One Health is based on the general premise that human and veterinary medicine are connected at multiple levels, with environmental and socioeconomic factors often providing a common denominator.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae fermentation-derived postbiotic (SCFP) has been shown to increase ruminal pH of cattle fed a high-concentrate diet. Increased ruminal pH has been linked to increased methane emissions. Some studies have suggested that SCFP can reduce methane emissions by improving feed efficiency.

Phytase is added to pig diets to improve P digestibility but may also improve amino acid (AA) digestibility. Data from experiments evaluating the dose–response effect of a phytase are used to determine AA “matrix” values, i.e., the amount by which the diet may be reduced in AA due to the expected contribution of the phytase.

Obesity in cats is a widespread issue that increases the risk of serious health conditions, including feline fatty liver disease. There has been interest in two micronutrients, choline and L-carnitine, for their potential to support liver health in cats, particularly in those that are obese. In the present study, 18 cats (nine lean and nine obese) were fed a commercial dry food supplemented with either choline, L-carnitine, or no supplement for 6 wk.

Metabolic availability (MA) of an amino acid (AA) is the fraction of a dietary AA that is digestible and available for protein synthesis. Chicken meal (ChM) and peas are commonly used protein sources in extruded dog foods, with peas containing more fiber. Moreover, the essential AA methionine (Met) is first limiting in peas.

High environmental temperatures detrimentally affect the productive performance and welfare of lactating sows. Reduced litter growth is linked to decreased sow milk production, but there may be other factors related to maternal heat stress that impact neonate development. For example, heat stress can increase the risk for lipid damage.

The amount of fat within beef muscle, known as intramuscular fat (IMF) or marbling, is a key factor that influences meat tenderness and juiciness—two key attributes that directly impact consumer satisfaction. The development of IMF occurs mainly during late pregnancy and in the first months after birth, a period called the “marbling window”. Research suggests that specific nutrients such as vitamin A may enhance this process at early stages of life.

The October Edition of The Giving Herd, an ASAS Foundation Newsletter

When piglets are weaned, they often experience stress, diarrhea, and slower growth. To manage these challenges, antibiotics or zinc oxide are commonly used, but concerns about resistance and environmental impact have prompted interest in safer and natural alternatives. This study tested a plant-based supplement made from green tea extract, butyric acid, and vitamin K (called GBK) on young pigs.

This study presents a computer vision–based method to measure the total feed intake of dairy cows to help farmers manage feeding practices more efficiently. The system uses an overhead camera to capture color images of the feed pile and analyze changes over time.

This new study explores how to improve OPU-IVF efficiency in high-quality Wagyu cattle exposed to high temperatures. Systematic folic acid supplementation in 20 clinically healthy Wagyu heifers under controlled heat stress for 20 d significantly reduced inflammatory signaling molecules linked to heat stress, while enhancing their antioxidant capacity and increasing estrogen levels.

Inflammation is an important response of the innate immune system, but feed intake is reduced in cattle experiencing inflammatory reactions. Acute and chronic inflammation leads to appetite depression via neural and hormonal mechanisms, and may impair the ability of the rumen in digesting feed via interactions between animal hormones and ruminal microbes.

After giving birth to a calf, cows, like other mammals, experience a period of very high energy expenditure, which is often associated with negative energy balance (NEB) or metabolic stress. NEB, among others, decreases the reproductive ability of the cow. In dairy cattle, it is required that both a high milk yield is achieved, and the cow is able to conceive again as soon as possible.

Genetic evaluation is the process of combining individual animal performance and ancestry data along with information on contributing non-genetic effects, to estimate the genetic merit of individuals. This is a routine process in all developed countries, with the outcome being estimates of genetic merit for individual animals.

The introduction of genomics into genetic prediction tools has led to a significant increase in selection accuracies across livestock populations. This innovation was enabled by the development of high-density genotyping arrays in the late 2000s. These tools have been used to generate millions of genotypes since.

The global dairy sector produced 930 million tons of milk in 2022, which was processed into a wide range of dairy products for human consumption. In 2023, 160.8 million tons have been produced by EU 27, the largest global producer, followed by United States.