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breed

Group of domestic animals with a distinctive phenotype

Entityclassification scheme infraspecific name specialized termQ38829

Also known as animal breed · breed of animals · domestic animal breed · pedigreed animal · pedigree animal · pedigreed pet

Instance of: classification scheme
, infraspecific name
, specialized term
Subclass of: group or class of living things
, organisms known by a particular common name
Part of: animal breeding

Overview

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · Read full article · Text CC BY-SA 4.0

A breed is a specific group of breedable domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In the literature, there exist several slightly deviating definitions. Breeds are formed through genetic isolation and either natural adaptation to the environment or selective breeding, or a combination of the two. Despite the centrality of the idea of "breeds" to animal husbandry and agriculture, no single, scientifically accepted definition of the term exists. A breed is therefore not an objective or biologically verifiable classification but is instead a term of art amongst groups of breeders who share a consensus around what qualities make some members of a given species members of a nameable subset.

Overview

All data

36 statements · 17% with external sources · numbers in brackets are citations

Properties for this type: FAO risk status
country of origin
‎breed belongs to taxon
Different from: Breed
animal breeding
Main Wikidata property: animal breed
Studied by: animal husbandry
Items classified: organism

Data quality

statements

17%

externally sourced

Source last edited July 4, 2026. AIDB refreshes this page daily.

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AIDB. (2026). breed (Q38829). Retrieved from https://aidb.si/e/breed-Q38829