cat·tle | ˈka-tᵊl 1
- domesticated quadrupeds held as property or raised for use, specifically: bovine animals on a farm or ranch
- human beings especially en masse
Cattle
Cattle were domesticated around 10,500 years ago.
Pasture and grazing for cattle are the dominant form of land use in the Great Plains2
Where cattle are prioritized, a type of ecology that could be considered species based ecology gets created, where decisions are made in realtionship to the managing of a particular species. This is in contrast to ecosystem ecology, which prioritizes the balance of an ecosystem.
Cattle in the United States is deeply tied up with land rights, capitalism, settler colonialism, mythology about the American West.
Cattle are completely controlled - from their reproduction, to their food. To ranchers this is considered an intersection between commercialism and stewardship.
Some people suggest creating more buffalo farms, since buffalo are native and already in a relationship between the ecosystem of the great plains, and a way to reduce the cattle population.
People tend to think cows are very dumb.
1. "cattle." Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, 2021. Web. 7 December 2021.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cattle ︎︎︎
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cattle ︎︎︎