ABSTRACT
This chapter presents an overview of the pathways through which stress may affect growth and development. Prolonged or severe activation of the stress response negatively affects animal welfare and livestock production, and should therefore be avoided. Most of the modern livestock species have their origin in the domestication of their respective ancestors several thousands of years ago. The chapter presents a brief overview of how stress is shown to affect growth and development in domesticated livestock species. The influence of a diverse array of stressors on livestock growth, in particularly as measured by the release of glucocorticoids, has been described in the literature. Allocation of resources to the functions of the stress response is regulated by the demand of the respective functions which is achieved through neural or hormonal communication with the organs involved. These allostatic mediators can be assessed in animals to investigate allostatic load.
