Robotic Livestock Breeding: A Historical and Technological Rewiew

Aristotle (384–323 BCE) once said, “If every tool could work by itself, by appropriate command or in a predetermined way… then there would be no need for workers or slaves.” This early philosophical insight significantly anticipates our current era, in which autonomous tools, powered by robotics and artificial intelligence (AI), increasingly replace the need for human labor. Yet robotics progressed slowly until the Industrial Revolution, and was only marginally developed by modern standards until the 13th century. One notable exception is the work of Ismail al-Jazari (1136, Upper Mesopotamia – 1206, Cizre), who is generally considered the father of cybernetics but is not widely recognized in Western scientific discourse. Al-Jazari laid out the basic principles of cybernetics, the field concerned with the control and regulation of complex systems, both living and nonliving. He is credited with designing and operating what can be considered the first robot, and his work is believed to have influenced Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) (Aleksandr, 1999). Living in the Cizre and Diyarbakır regions, Al-Jazari documented approximately 50 mechanical devices and instructions for their construction (Anonymous, 2025b). Today, the field of robotics has advanced rapidly. One important application area is robotic animal husbandry, often described as the “farming of the future” through the lens of artificial intelligence. This field integrates robotics, AI-enabled systems, sensors, automation, and the Internet of Things (IoT) into livestock management to improve animal welfare, reduce labor demands, and increase overall productivity.