Breeds at Risk Register
The lists of breeds have been compiled on the basis of the ‘Definitions’ set out in the following document:
Breeds have been included on the lists where the population of registered breeding females available for purebred reproduction is assessed as falling below the following thresholds: 3,000 for cattle, sheep, goats and equines; 1,500 for pigs and 1,000 for poultry. In each case, the threshold is increased by 20% where fewer than 80% of pure bred females are bred with pure bred males of the same breed. For cattle, sheep and goats, the population figures have been obtained either directly from breed societies or derived by calculation using the average number of females registered each year over the last three years for which figures were available from breed societies. This average figure has then been multiplied by a species specific number to calculate the total number of registered females based on registrations in a single year (3.52 for cattle; 2.41 for sheep). Census data were available for pigs and direct data was obtained for equines, goats and poultry. All population calculations are subject to change should evidence be provided that a different multiplier should be used for the breed in question or that a census has been carried out.
