UPSC Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Sciences Syllabus for IAS Mains

UPSC Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Sciences Syllabus 2025

Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science is one of the optional subjects with two exams in the UPSC Civil Services Mains Test (Paper I and Paper II). Animal nutrition, physiology, reproduction, livestock production & management, genetics, and animal breeding are all topics covered in Paper I. The topics covered in Paper II of Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science include anatomy, pharmacology, hygiene, animal diseases, veterinary public health, milk products & related technology, and meat hygiene & related technology. One of the specialised subjects on the optional course syllabus is animal husbandry and veterinary science. Several UPSC candidates who have experience in the dairy/meat industry, medicine, or veterinarians themselves opt for the optional syllabus in animal husbandry and veterinary science. The precise nature of the Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science syllabus of UPSC indicates the potential of scoring well is very high. This raises the UPSC candidate’s overall score, improving their chances of being chosen.

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UPSC Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Sciences Paper 1 Syllabus 2025

The Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Sciences Syllabus for paper 1 consists of  Units:

•  Animal Nutrition
•  Animal Physiology
•  Animal Reproduction
•  Livestock Production and Management
•  Genetics and Animal Breeding
•  Extension

1. Animal Nutrition:

• 1.1 Partitioning of food energy within the animal. Direct and indirect calorimetry. Carbon – nitrogen balance and comparative slaughter methods. Systems for expressing the energy value of foods in ruminants, pigs and poultry. Energy requirements for maintenance, growth, pregnancy, lactation, egg, wool, and meat production.
• 1.2 Latest advances in protein nutrition, Energy protein interrelationships, Evaluation of protein quality, and Use of NPN compounds in ruminant diets. Protein requirements for maintenance, growth, pregnancy, lactation, egg, wool and meat production.
• 1.3 Major and trace minerals – Their sources, physiological functions and deficiency symptoms. Toxic minerals. Mineral interactions. Role of fat-soluble and water-soluble vitamins in the body, their sources and deficiency symptoms.
• 1.4 Feed additives – methane inhibitors, probiotics, enzymes, antibiotics, hormones, oligosaccharides, antioxidants, emulsifiers, mould inhibitors, buffers etc. Use and abuse of growth promoters like hormones and antibiotics – latest concepts.
• 1.5 Conservation of fodders. Storage of feeds and feed ingredients. Recent advances in feed technology and feed processing. Anti-nutritional and toxic factors present in livestock feeds. Feed analysis and quality control. Digestibility trials – direct, indirect and indicator methods. Predicting feed intake in grazing animals.
• 1.6 Advances in ruminant nutrition. Nutrient requirements. Balanced rations. Feeding of calves, pregnant, work animals and breeding bulls. Strategies for feeding milch animals during different stages of the lactation cycle. Effect of feeding on milk composition. Feeding of goats for meat and milk production. Feeding sheep for meat and wool production.
• 1.7 Swine Nutrition. Nutrient requirements. Creep, starter, grower and finisher rations. Feeding of pigs for lean meat production. Low-cost rations for swine.
• 1.8 Poultry nutrition. Special features of poultry nutrition. Nutrient requirements for meat and egg production. Formulation of rations for different classes of layers and broilers.

2. Animal Physiology

• 2.1 Physiology of blood and its circulation, respiration; excretion. Endocrine glands in health and disease.
• 2.2 Blood constituents – Properties and functions-blood cell formation Haemoglobin synthesis and chemistry plasma proteins production, classification and properties, coagulation of blood; Haemorrhagic disorders-anticoagulants-blood groups-Blood volumePlasma expanders-Buffer systems in blood. Biochemical tests and their significance in disease diagnosis.
• 2.3 Circulation – Physiology of heart, cardiac cycle, heart sounds, heart beat, electrocardiograms. Work and efficiency of heart-effect of ions on heart function metabolism of cardiac muscle, nervous and chemical regulation of heart, the effect of temperature and stress on heart, blood pressure and hypertension, osmotic regulation, arterial pulse, vasomotor regulation of circulation, shock. Coronary and pulmonary circulation, Blood-Brain barrier- Cerebrospinal fluid- circulation in birds.
• 2.4 Respiration – Mechanism of respiration, Transport and exchange of gases -neural control of respiration-chemoreceptors-hypoxia-respiration in birds.
• 2.5 Excretion-Structure and function of kidney-formation of urine-methods of studying renal function-renal regulation of acid-base balance: physiological constituents of urine-renal failure-passive venous congestion-Urinary secretion in chicken-Sweat glands and their function. Bio-chemical test for urinary dysfunction.
• 2.6 Endocrine glands – Functional disorders their symptoms and diagnosis. Synthesis of hormones, mechanism and control of secretion- hormonal receptor classification and function.
• 2.7 Growth and Animal Production Prenatal and postnatal growth, maturation, growth curves, measures of growth, factors affecting growth, conformation, body composition, and meat quality.
• 2.8 Physiology of Milk Production, Reproduction and Digestion- Current status of hormonal control of mammary development, milk secretion and milk ejection, Male and Female reproductive organs, their components and functions. Digestive organs and their functions.
• 2.9 Environmental Physiology, Physiological relations and their regulation; mechanisms of adaptation, environmental factors and regulatory mechanisms involved in animal behaviour, climatology – various parameters and their importance. Animal ecology. Physiology of behaviour. Effect of stress on health and production.

3. Animal Reproduction: Semen quality- Preservation and Artificial Insemination- Components of semen, the composition of spermatozoa, chemical and physical properties of ejaculated semen, factors affecting semen in vivo and in vitro. Factors affecting semen production and quality, preservation, the composition of diluents, sperm concentration, and transport of diluted semen. Deep freezing techniques in cows, sheep, goats, swine and poultry. Detection of oestrus and time of insemination for better conception. Anoestrus and repeat breeding.

4. Livestock Production and Management:

• 4.1 Commercial Dairy Farming Comparison of dairy farming in India with advanced countries. Dairying under mixed farming and as specialized farming, economic dairy farming. Starting of a dairy farm, Capital and land requirement, organization of the dairy farm. Opportunities in dairy farming, factors determining the efficiency of dairy animals. Herd recording, budgeting, cost of milk production, pricing policy; Personnel Management. Developing Practical and Economic rations for dairy cattle; supply of greens throughout the year, feed and fodder requirements of Dairy Farm. Feeding regimes for young stock and bulls, heifers and breeding animals; new trends in feeding young and adult stock; Feeding records.
• 4.2 Commercial meat, egg and wool production- Development of practical and economic rations for sheep, goats, pigs, rabbits and poultry. Supply of greens, fodder, and feeding regimes for young and mature stock. New trends in enhancing production and management. Capital and land requirements and socio-economic concept.
• 4.3 Feeding and management of animals under drought, flood and other natural calamities

5. Genetics and Animal Breeding:

• History of animal genetics. Mitosis and Meiosis: Mendelian inheritance; deviations to Mendelian genetics; Expression of genes; Linkage and crossing over; Sex determination, sex influenced and sex limited characters; Blood groups and polymorphism; Chromosome aberrations; Cytoplasmic inheritance. Gene and its structure; DNA as a genetic material; Genetic code and protein synthesis; Recombinant DNA technology. Mutations, types of mutations, methods for detecting mutations and mutation rate. Trans-genesis.
• 5.1 Population Genetics applied to Animal Breeding- Quantitative Vs. qualitative traits; Hardy Weinberg Law; Population Vs. individual; Gene and genotypic frequency; Forces changing gene frequency; Random drift and small populations; Theory of path coefficient; Inbreeding, methods of estimating inbreeding coefficient, systems of inbreeding, Effective population size; Breeding value, estimation of breeding value, dominance and epistatic deviation; Partitioning of variation; Genotype X environment correlation and genotype X environment interaction; role of multiple measurements; Resemblance between relatives.
• 5.2 Breeding Systems- Breeds of lives- sock and Poultry. Heritability, repeatability and genetic and phenotypic correlations, their methods of estimation and precision of estimates; Aids to selection and their relative merits; Individual, pedigree, family and within family selection; Progeny testing; Methods of selection; Construction of selection indices and their uses; Comparative evaluation of genetic gains through various selection methods; Indirect selection and correlated response; Inbreeding, outbreeding, upgrading, cross-breeding and synthesis of breeds; Crossing of inbred lines for commercial production; Selection for general and specific combining ability; Breeding for threshold characters. Sire index.

6. Extension: Basic philosophy, objectives, concept and principles of extension. Different Methods are adopted to educate farmers under rural conditions. Generation of technology, its transfer and feedback. Problems and constraints in transfer of technology. Animal husbandry programmes for rural development.

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UPSC Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Sciences Paper 2 Syllabus 2025

The syllabus for paper 2 Consists of the following topics

1. Animatoy, Pharmacology and Hygiene
2. Animal Diseases
3. Veterinary Public Health
4. Milk and Milk Products Technology
5. Meat Hygiene and Technology

1. Anatomy, Pharmacology and Hygiene:

• 1.1 Histology and Histological Techniques: Paraffin embedding technique of tissue processing and H.E. staining – Freezing microtomy- MicroscopyBright field microscope and electron microscope. Cytology-structure of cell, organelle and inclusions; cell division-cell types- Tissues and their classification of embryonic and adult tissues-Comparative histology of organs-Vascular. Nervous, digestive, respiratory, musculoskeletal and urogenital systems- Endocrine glands -Integuments-sense organs.
• 1.2 Embryology – Embryology of vertebrates with special reference to aves and domestic mammals gametogenesis-fertilization-germ layers- foetal membranes and placentation-types of the placenta in domestic mammals-Teratology-twins and twinning- organogenesis -germ layer derivatives- endodermal, mesodermal and ectodermal derivates.
• 1.3 Bovine Anatomy- Regional Anatomy: Paranasal sinuses of OX- surface anatomy of salivary glands. Regional anatomy of infraorbital, maxillary, mandibulo alveolar, mental and cornual nerve block. Regional anatomy of paravertebral nerves, pudendal nerve, median ulnar and radial nerves-tibial, fibular and digital nerves-Cranial nerves-structures involved in epidural anaesthesia-superficial lymph nodes-surface anatomy of visceral organs of thoracic, abdominal and pelvic cavities-comparative features of locomotor apparatus and their application in the biomechanics of the mammalian body.
• 1.4 Anatomy of Fowl- Musculo-skeletal system-functional anatomy in relation to respiration and flying, digestion and egg production.
• 1.5 Pharmacology and therapeutic drugs – Cellular level of pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics. Drugs acting on fluids and electrolyte balance. Drugs acting on the Autonomic nervous system. Modern concepts of anaesthesia and dissociative anaesthetics. Autacoids. Antimicrobials and principles of chemotherapy in microbial infections. Use of hormones in therapeutics- chemotherapy of parasitic infections. Drug and economic concerns in the Edible tissues of animals- chemotherapy of Neoplastic diseases. Toxicity due to insecticides, plants, metals, non-metals, zootoxins and mycotoxins.
• 1.6 Veterinary Hygiene with reference to water, air and habitation – Assessment of pollution of water, air and soil- Importance of climate in animal health- effect of environment on animal function and performance-relationship between industrialization and animal agriculture- animal housing requirements for specific categories of domestic animals viz. pregnant cows and sows, milking cows, broiler birds stress, strain and productivity in relation to animal habitation.

2. Animal Diseases:

• 2.1 Etiology, epidemiology pathogenesis, symptoms, postmortem lesions, diagnosis, and control of infectious diseases of cattle, sheep and goats, horses, pigs and poultry.
• 2.2 Etiology, epidemiology, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment of production diseases of cattle, horse, pig and poultry.
• 2.3 Deficiency diseases of domestic animals and birds.
• 2.4 Diagnosis and treatment of non-specific conditions like impaction, Bloat, Diarrhoea, Indigestion, dehydration, stroke, and poisoning.
• 2.5 Diagnosis and treatment of neurological disorders.
• 2.6 Principles and methods of immunization of animals against specific diseases hard immunity- disease free zones- zero disease concept- chemoprophylaxis.
• 2.7 Anaesthesia- local, regional and general-preanesthetic medication. Symptoms and surgical interference in fractures and dislocation. Hernia, choking abomasal displacement- Caesarian operations. Rumenotomy-Castrations.
• 2.8 Disease investigation techniques.- Materials for laboratory investigationEstablishment of Animal Health CentersDisease free zone.

3. Veterinary Public Health:

• 3.1 Zoonoses. – Classification, definition, the role of animals and birds in prevalence and transmission of zoonotic diseases occupational zoonotic diseases.
• 3.2 Epidemiology- Principle, the definition of epidemiological terms, application of epidemiological measures in the study of diseases and disease control. Epidemiological features of air, water and foodborne infections. OIE regulations, WTO, sanitary and phytosanitary measures.
• 3.3 Veterinary Jurisprudence- Rules and Regulations for improvement of animal quality and prevention of animal diseases – State and central rules for prevention of animal and animal product borne diseases- S P C A- Veterolegal cases Certificates -Materials and Methods of collection of samples for veterolegal investigation.

4. Milk and Milk Products Technology:

• 4.1 Market Milk: Quality, testing and grading of raw milk. Processing, packaging, storing, distribution, marketing, defects and their control. Preparation of the following milk: Pasteurized, standardized, toned, double-toned, sterilized, homogenized, reconstituted, recombined and flavoured milk. Preparation of cultured milk, cultures and their management, yoghurt, Dahi, Lassi and Srikhand. Preparation of flavoured and sterilized milk. Legal standards. Sanitation requirements for clean and safe milk and for the milk plant equipment.
• 4.2 Milk Products Technology: Selection of raw materials, processing, storing, distributing and marketing milk products such as Cream, Butter, Ghee, Khoa, Channa, Cheese, condensed, evaporated, dried milk and baby food, Ice cream and Kulfi; by-products, whey products, buttermilk, lactose and casein. Testing, grading, and judging milk products- BIS and Agmark specifications, legal standards, quality control and nutritive properties. Packaging, processing and operational control. Cost of dairy products

5. Meat Hygiene and Technology:

• 5.1 Meat Hygiene.
• 5.1.1 Ante mortem care and management of food animals, stunning, slaughter and dressing operations; abattoir requirements and designs; Meat inspection procedures and judgment of carcass meat cuts- grading of carcass meat cuts- duties and functions of Veterinarians in wholesome meat production.
• 5.1.2 Hygenic methods of handling the production of meat- Spoilage of meat and control measures- Post-slaughter physicochemical changes in meat and factors that influence them- Quality improvement methods – Adulteration of meat and detection – Regulatory provisions in Meat trade and Industry.
• 5.2 Meat Technology.
• 5.2.1 Physical and chemical characteristics of meat- Meat emulsions- Methods of preservation of meat- Curing, canning, irradiation, packaging of meat and meat products, processing and formulations.
• 5.3 By-products- Slaughterhouse byproducts and their utilization- Edible and inedible by-products- Social and economic implications of proper utilization of slaughterhouse by-products- Organ products for food and pharmaceuticals.
• 5.4 Poultry Products Technology, Chemical composition and nutritive value of poultry meat, pre-slaughter care and management. Slaughtering techniques, inspection, and preservation of poultry meat and products. Legal and BIS standards. Structure, composition and nutritive value of eggs. Microbial spoilage. Preservation and maintenance. Marketing of poultry meat, eggs and products. Value-added meat products.
• 5.5 Rabbit/Fur Animal farming – Rabbit meat production. Disposal and utilization of fur and wool and recycling of waste by-products. Grading of wool.

Aspirants Can Check UPSC Syllabus 2025 Here!

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