7/23/2008

How to raise a giant rabbit

There are two methods to artificially alter the traits and qualities of animals: selective breeding and genetic manipulation. The latter involves the manipulation of genes in biotechnology laboratories.

For example, three years ago scientists from the August Cieszkowski Agricultural University in Poland, rabbits inserted in the gene for human growth hormone. The resulting transgenic animals were larger than the rest of their fellow human beings, although the real purpose of the experiment was that females produce this hormone for human therapeutic use, for example, children with growth problems.

Another way to alter the size of a rabbit is through selective breeding, a practice that farmers have been doing for thousands of years.
This is basically select copies with a quality and encourage their reproduction.
Thus, the Berlin keeper Hans Wagner has managed to breed giant rabbits with a weight of 8 to 10 kilos and a length next to Subway.

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