By Les O'Dell, The Livestock Conservancy Michele Sullivan Burns still shakes her head in disbelief. It has been about a month since she turned the corner on the poultry exhibition floor at the Texas State Fair and saw – for the first time – that Rodrigo, her Black Turkey, had been named the state’s ... Read more
By Renard TurnerEditor’s Note: This article originally appeared in the Winter 2021 issue of The Livestock Conservancy Newsletter. We are sharing it again as part of “Goat Month.”Renard Turner and his wife Chinette own Vanguard Ranch in central Virginia, where they have raised registered Horned Dorset sheep, Karakul sheep, Kiko goats, Spanish goats and horses. ... Read more
One of the oldest horse breeds in North America, the Morgan horse is widely recognized as an American treasure. It is also unique because the breed traces to a single foundation sire, a colt named Figure owned by Justin Morgan whose name became forever associated with the breed. Morgan was a teacher and musical ... Read more
D. Phillip Sponenberg, DVM, PhD., has served as Science and Technical Advisor to The Livestock Conservancy since 1978. He provides counsel and mentoring to Conservancy staff, breeders, breed associations, scholars, and NGO partners. Dr. Sponenberg established both the Conservation Priority List and the standards for rare breed inclusion on that List. Because of the ... Read more
Almost 200 Endangered Livestock and Poultry Breeds For the past 37 years, The Livestock Conservancy has been identifying and ranking the threat of extinction for almost 200 heritage breeds of livestock and poultry. “More than 4,000 volunteer breeders and 150+ breed associations work diligently to ensure these endangered breeds don’t disappear from our farms, ... Read more
Heritage breeds are traditional livestock breeds that were raised by our forefathers. These are the breeds of a bygone era, before industrial agriculture became a mainstream practice. These breeds were carefully selected and bred over time to develop traits that made them well-adapted to the local environment and they thrived under farming practices and ... Read more
Heritage breed education can have a profound impact on young people, often shaping their life-long appreciation for conservation. Alexandria Brown-Haglund of Sweet Rose Acres is a great example of a heritage breeder whose passion for American Chinchilla rabbits started as a student. “In high school, someone had an American Chinchilla rabbit for sale at ... Read more
The Livestock Conservancy invites you to celebrate International Heritage Breeds Week Sunday, May 21 through Saturday, May 27. During the ninth annual celebration, the Conservancy is sharing the critically important message that rare breeds of livestock and poultry are an important part of the climate solutions needed for a changing planet. Biodiversity matters. ... Read more
Involving younger generations in heritage breed conservation is crucial to our mission of protecting endangered livestock and poultry breeds from extinction. As we celebrate Rabbit Month and recognize the sixteen rabbit breeds on the Conservation Priority List, we want to highlight how young people can get involved with these heritage breeds. Whether by joining ... Read more
By Eric and Callene Rapp, Rare Hare Barn Eric and Callene Rapp, members of The Livestock Conservancy, focus on the conservation of heritage breed rabbits at Rare Hare Barn. They are the authors of Raising Rabbits for Meat, a how-to guide to help you succeed in starting and running a home rabbitry for a ... Read more
