>>...I wonder if they could breed some sort of large fast-growing animals to use as 'lab rats.' Problem is, those qualities also count as valuable meat animals, especially after getting enough forage to grow that large.<<
After the End, there are tens of thousands of farm animals left over. Sadly, almost all of them are commercial breeds with little if any ability to care for themselves. So they are only useful as immediate food or "lab rats." This comes up in several poems, especially with tribal folks who just aren't very attracted to white people's finicky livestock. Heritage breeds fare much better, as they are resilient to local conditions and equipped to forage.
>> How large is large anyway? Human 120-250lbs? More? Less? Does final adult size* or relatedness to humans have an effect? <<
You need a mammal near or above human adult weight to test for the Grunge. Sometimes it hits other things -- especially during the bombing, the aerosol wiped out a lot of birds due to their sensitive lungs -- but you want to get as close to the target creature (a combat-capable white male) as possible. So a lot of people used commercial cows for this purpose.
>>Maybe a good use for unwanted crocodiles or pythons, if there's an Afta version of pest control, and Grunge works on reptiles? (You dont have to feed 'em, and you want them gone anyway...)<<
I'm not sure if the Grunge would kill reptiles. I mean, it wouldn't be good for them because of the chemicals, but it's not designed for their biology. Even though it attacks muscle mass, which means gators might be susceptible, their metabolism is so much slower that it might not get much of a grip.
>> There's also those giant rabbits, but they may not be big enough. Or dogs, but they are very useful working animals. (And I'm sad at the thought of using common pet animals.) <<
Almost no pet animals would be big enough, except perhaps some giant dogs such as St. Bernards. Those breeds need too much food to survive well in the Aftermath.
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dancing_serpent
Re: Yes ...
Date: 2021-05-26 04:01 am (UTC)After the End, there are tens of thousands of farm animals left over. Sadly, almost all of them are commercial breeds with little if any ability to care for themselves. So they are only useful as immediate food or "lab rats." This comes up in several poems, especially with tribal folks who just aren't very attracted to white people's finicky livestock. Heritage breeds fare much better, as they are resilient to local conditions and equipped to forage.
>> How large is large anyway? Human 120-250lbs? More? Less? Does final adult size* or relatedness to humans have an effect? <<
You need a mammal near or above human adult weight to test for the Grunge. Sometimes it hits other things -- especially during the bombing, the aerosol wiped out a lot of birds due to their sensitive lungs -- but you want to get as close to the target creature (a combat-capable white male) as possible. So a lot of people used commercial cows for this purpose.
>>Maybe a good use for unwanted crocodiles or pythons, if there's an Afta version of pest control, and Grunge works on reptiles? (You dont have to feed 'em, and you want them gone anyway...)<<
I'm not sure if the Grunge would kill reptiles. I mean, it wouldn't be good for them because of the chemicals, but it's not designed for their biology. Even though it attacks muscle mass, which means gators might be susceptible, their metabolism is so much slower that it might not get much of a grip.
>> There's also those giant rabbits, but they may not be big enough. Or dogs, but they are very useful working animals. (And I'm sad at the thought of using common pet animals.) <<
Almost no pet animals would be big enough, except perhaps some giant dogs such as St. Bernards. Those breeds need too much food to survive well in the Aftermath.