Mutations: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

     A mutation is defined as the changing of the structure of a gene, resulting in a change from the normal that may be passed down from generation to generation. When most people hear the word "mutation" they think of the bad things like two headed pigs or horrible deformities but a lot of really good things come from mutations. In this post I'll be taking about the good mutations, the bad mutations, and the ugly mutations.

The Good

     Many animals in the livestock industry have good traits that come from mutations. A common one that is easy to identify is with sheep. The tendency for ewes to have large litters of lambs can be categorized as a mutation in some breeds. The Booroola Merino breed is especially affected by this. They can have litters of around 3 to 4 lambs on average, which is great for the farmer.

     Another animal that shows positive mutations is cattle. I've already talked about the "double-muscle" mutation, in my previous post, that can supply more meat per cow, which means more money. There's also a mutation in dairy cattle that can be very good for the butter and cheese industry. Some cows have milk that have a higher percentage of fat, which is great for making dairy products.

The Bad

     Although there are good mutations, there are also quite a bit of bad ones. Again, I'll start with sheep. A common mutation among them are jaw defects. This includes underbites, overbites, and a condition called parrot mouth. The teeth stick out with this defect and almost look like a beak. With cattle there's a mutation that increases milk yield, which sounds good until it's known that this mutation also results in embryonic mortality.

The Ugly

     There are bad mutations, which often don't end in mortality, and then there's the ugly mutations, which are serious genetic mishaps that often prevent offspring from reaching adult-hood. A really bad one in sheep is a disorder called Spider Lamb Syndrome. This genetic disease causes defects such as: abnormally long and bent legs, twisted spines, shallow bodies, flattened ribs, and long necks. A good example of this is pictured below. This is almost the same as another disease called crooked tail, which occurs in cattle.