Mason’s World Encyclopedia of Livestock Breeds and Breeding

To understand this work, one needs to understand what is meant by a “breed”. Clearly, we are discussing animals and there has been much debate about the definition. Some claim that a breed, whether dogs, cats, sheep, goats or any other animal, can only be known as a breed if there is a breed society to define its standards or a published herd book. This requires some common and formal consent among its breeders. Some say that the definition is “a group of domesticated animals that, when bred to each other, will consistently produce offspring that are recognisably of that...