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Sustainable technology, whose origin dates back millennia. It is an effective alternative for land preparation, transportation and other agricultural and social work. It includes not only the use of draft animals, but also of the animals of load and of mount.

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Working animals

The use of animal traction as a substitute or to assist manual labor, was a decisive step in the evolution of the work of the land, which multiplied the productivity of man, and thus increased food production. The origin of the use of animals for soil tillage and transportation originally began between the peoples of Mesopotamia and Egypt.
In America, in pre-Columbian cultures, only llamas were used in a limited way for cargo in Andean areas. The oxen, horses and mules were introduced by the first settlers.
The use of this energy source is more widespread than at first glance; Around 250 to 300 million animals work in the world.
In American countries, oxen, horses and mules were introduced by the first colonizers. Its use predominates in several regions of the world: While in the developed countries with a greater motorization potential, animal traction represents only 11%, according to FAO estimates currently the contributions of animal traction in the total of agricultural work they represent 25% in Asia, 12% in the Middle East; 13% in Latin America and 8% in Africa.

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Animal traction vs. tractor

It is not proclaimed that the ox substitute the tractor: the motorized traction and the animal traction should be used in a complementary way depending on the power required by the tasks to be carried out, the availability of fuel, the tradition, the conditions of the relief, the extension of the areas, etc. In small-scale farms the use of working animals is predominant.

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Importance of the use of working animals

The use of the work potential of the animals in substitution or assisting manual or mechanized work is decisive in the development of food production. For the small and medium producer animal traction is the most feasible way to introduce mechanization. The preservation of soils, avoiding indiscriminate tillage and compaction, through the efficient combination of machines and animal traction, and preserving and elevating the fertility of soils with models of sustainable production, organic and ecological, where animal traction is a technological and complementary alternative.

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It has been proven, for example, that sugarcane plantations treated only with animal traction can last 10 or more years, while other similar ones in which tractors are used in the fourth year as a maximum, it is necessary to demolish them. In other crops such as tobacco, the yields are higher and the quality is higher when working animals are used.

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In the mountainous regions the droppings of mules are essential for the transfer of products and supplies. The transport of people and products in carts and cars pulled by horses is also widely used. That is why for the sustainable development of agriculture should be used properly animal traction, which includes the proper use of implements whether traditional, new or improved, as well as care, veterinary care, feeding and protection of oxen , horses and mules.
In addition to its great importance in the economic aspects, animal traction also has an outstanding importance in the socio-political and cultural. The flock has been placed in a prominent place in agricultural production, for its contribution in the rescue of this tradition; for the dedication in the teaching of their animals and the creation of their own implements and harnesses.

Advantages of animal traction for the small farmer

The use of animal labor potential as substitution or to assist manual labor is decisive in the development of food production. For the small and medium producer animal traction is the most feasible way to introduce mechanization because:
Compared with manual labor its use considerably increases the productivity of man.
The investment in implements is much lower than in the motorized system.
The expenses for supplies, current repairs and maintenance are minimized.
Its operation is simple and has a low operating cost.
The animals can be fed with residues and harvest by-products.
Aerotechnically the damages are minor (less damage to crops and less soil compaction)
At the end of its useful life, the final value of the animals is greater than the initial value.

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Types of working animals

The animal species most commonly used in agriculture and transportation are cattle (oxen and buffaloes) and equines (horses, donkeys and mules). In countries and regions preference is given to the use of oxen for the work of plowing and cultivation and for the transport of products on roads. Oxen of Indian races, such as zebu and their mixtures with other breeds, are usually more resistant to work and diseases than other breeds of European origin. Traditionally oxen are used in yokes, but it is often preferable to use oxen alone, especially in light work. The working speed of a yoke is 2-4 km / h.
It is important to increase the use of horses, mules and donkeys, for the plowing and cultivation, since the working speed oscillates between 4-6 km / h and they are more maneuverable than the yokes. However, they have less draft power than the oxen. In the use of one type of animal or another for farming, the tradition is more important: in many countries bovine animals are preferred, but in others, equids are preferred.
The most common is to use the horses for the assembly and the transfer of loads and personnel in carts; while mules and donkeys are used mostly for back loading in mountainous areas, as they are very resistant and agile in these conditions.
Although it may seem strange, in some parts of the world dairy cows are also used as work animals. In small farms this allows feeding and caring for fewer animals. Cows must not carry out an excessive work day or very heavy work, and under these conditions it has been shown that milk production only decreases by an average of 10%.

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Projection bars

The plow and the cultivators of a furrow have always been predominant in agriculture. However, multi-furrow cultivators called animal traction bars or simply multi-implements need more diffusion. As its name indicates, they are equipment to which a great variety of work organs can be added for the plowing, the pre-plant conditioning, the sowing, the cultivation and other tasks.

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Animal traction and agricultural production technologies

The use of working animals is more widespread in small-scale farming technologies. Agricultural production technology is understood as the set of processes that are carried out to obtain an agricultural, livestock, forestry or other type of product. By extension, other related activities are included, such as post-harvest processing, mini-industries, agricultural workshops, etc.
Agricultural production technologies depend fundamentally on four factors: the type or model of agriculture practiced, the crop or crops to be planted or planted, the conditions in which they are produced and the implements and other means used. The types or models of agriculture can be summarized in two types: conventional agriculture and sustainable agriculture.

The use of animal traction in conventional agriculture and sustainable agriculture.
Conventional agriculture is modern agricultural production generally carried out with the wide and even indiscriminate use of mobile energy resources (tractors, harvesters) and agrochemicals (for fertilization and phytosanitary protection), as well as monoculture. These factors eventually produce irreversible damage to one of humanity's most important resources: the soil.
In sustainable agriculture, the use of work animals is sometimes supplemented by the use of tractors, depending on the size of the productive units. The concept of sustainable agriculture is a relatively recent response to the decline in the quality of natural resources associated with modern conventional agriculture. It is based on polyculture and the possible reduction or elimination of agrochemicals and motorized machinery, guaranteeing adequate nutrition and protection of plants through the use of organic nutrient sources and integrated pest management.

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