{"product_id":"pigs-a-handbook-of-the-breeds-of-the-world-9781873403174","title":"Pigs a Handbook of the Breeds of the World","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis study draws attention to the immense diversity in the pigs of the world. It is a guide to the breeds and types of domesticated pig  as well as their wild ancestors and relatives in detail. For at least 40 000 years pigs have been a major source of animal protein in the human diet  and they have also played an essential role in some societies far beyond that of providing meat and manure  or turning the soil for planting crops. Far from being merely a breed catalogue  this book paints the setting in which pigs of all kinds exist - whether wild  domesticated or feral - and the factors that have shaped them. These include: the natural environments to which they have adapted themselves; the historical movements of pig-keeping cultures and hence the spread of pig domestication; the arrival of domesticated pigs in unlikely places in the company of the old navigators and explorers; the importance of pigs in certain cultures  as well as in agriculture; historical and current national pig industries  and the often complicated and intriguing detective stories about the history of different breeds. Above all  the book takes a global look at pigs - a context which gives a much broader perspective to their development  and also emphasizes the internationality of the pig. The breed entries are gathered in geographical sections according to the breeds country of origin. Each section has an introduction  which sets the regions pigs in a cultural  as well as an agricultural context. The development of each breed is traced  with ample reference to influential breeds which no longer exist or are rare today. Pigs are a major source of meat in all except Muslim\/Hindu cultures. There are about 780 million of them in the world  nearly half of them in Asia. In the search for the perfect animal  the genetic pool needs to be as varied as possible. Which is why the preservation of the ancient breeds both European and Oriental is so vital today.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45953199308853,"sku":"ByrdShop_1873403178","price":60.88,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9781873403174.jpg?v=1788181402","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/pigs-a-handbook-of-the-breeds-of-the-world-9781873403174","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}