İnsanın fıtratında bulunan karnını doyurma duygusu, aynı zamanda hayatın devamlılığının da ilk şartıdır. Besin zincirinin önemli bir halkasını ise hayvanlar oluşturmaktadır. Hal böyle olunca, devletlerin hayatında da hayvancılık önemli bir yere sahiptir. Her devlette olduğu gibi Osmanlı Devleti için de halkının ve ordularının besin kaynağı olarak et ön plan olmuştur. Coğrafî konumu bakımından etrafında kendisini besleyecek ziraî kaynakların azlığı nedeniyle Bizans döneminden beri İstanbul’un ihtiyaçları Rumeli ve Anadolu’dan karşılanmıştır. İstanbul’un et ihtiyacı da hayvan varlığı bakımından zengin olan Rumeli ve Anadolu’daki konar-göçer aşiretlerden sağlanmıştır. 1570’te Halep Türkmenlerinin 492.637 küçükbaş hayvan varlığı vardı. Bölgedeki Kilis İzzeddin Bey Ekradının hayvan varlığı ile birlikte 1.081.845 baş yapmaktaydı ki, gerçekten büyük bir zenginlikti. Aynı dönemde Bozulus Türkmenlerinin koyun mevcudu yaklaşık 2 milyondu. 16. yüzyılda ortalama her yıl 200.000 koyun İstanbul’a getirilirdi. 19. yüzyılın sonlarında Şam, Beyrut, Trablus, Akka, Hama, Balka ve Havran’dan müteşekkil Suriye vilayetinin 8.203.888 küçükbaş hayvanı vardı. 1913 yılında İstanbul’da yıllık ortalama 1.200.000 koyun kesilmekteydi. Ordunun ihtiyacı için etin zamanında ve yeterince hazırlanması ve ordu bölgesine sevk edilmesi oldukça önemli olmuştur. Seferler için binlerle ifade edilen miktarda koyun talep edilmiştir. Ordu, koyun ve diğer ihtiyaçlarını bedeli karşılığında almış, halkın mallarına zorla el koymamıştır. Şehirlerde halkın et ihtiyacının karşılanması, piyasaya arzı, fiyatlarının kontrolü belli kanunlara bağlanmış, uygulanan narh sistemi ile et fiyatları kontrol altında tutulmuştur. Hayvanların etinden başka sütünden de yararlanılmış, tereyağı ve peynir, geniş halk kitlelerinin ihtiyacını karşılamıştır. Hayvancılık, özelliği itibariyle geniş bir istihdam alanı yaratmıştır. Doğrudan veya dolaylı olarak hayvanlarla ilgili pek çok zanaat kolu gelişmiştir. Öte yandan hayvan varlığı büyük bir vergi kaynağı oluşturmuş; koyun, camus, deve, katır vergiye tabi tutulmuştur. Ulaşım, nakliye ve sefer hizmetlerinde de hayvanlar kullanılmıştır. Ziraat, ulaştırma, haberleşme, savaş, göçler ve ülkelerin imarında, teknolojinin gelişmesinde, kısacası hayatın bütün alanlarında insanların en büyük yardımcısı hayvanlar olmuştur.

Since man is an integral part of nature, animal husbandry has a special place in human and social life. Throughout history animals have been an important link in the food chain. As such, livestock occupies an important place in the lives of states.For each state, meat is the main source of food for its people and armies. Meeting the meat needs of the people in the cities, supply to the market, control of prices were subject to certain laws. Meat prices were kept under control with narh system applied in cities. During the period when the rural population was higher, the people also met poultry, hunting and fishing which they fed in the courtyard of almost every house.Istanbul's need for meat has been a problem throughout history. In terms of geographical location, Istanbul has few agricultural resources to feed itself. For this, Istanbul’s needs have been met from Rumelia and Anatolia since the Byzantine period. Istanbul's wheat is from Rumelia and Anatolia. Rice came from Egypt, olive oil came from Mediterranean, Aegean and Islands, butter and cheese came from Crimea. The need for meat was provided by the nomadic tribes in Rumelia and Anatolia. Animals other than meat are the largest source of milk and dairy products. Butter and cheese would meet the needs of large masses of people.Anatolia and Rumelia were rich in animals. In 1570, the Turkmen of Aleppo had 492.637 ovine animals. With the animal existence of Kilis İzzeddin Bey Akrads’ in the region, 1.081.845 is headed, which is really a great wealth. In the same period, sheep size of Bozulus Turkmens was approximately 2 million. In the 16th century, an average of 200.000 sheep were brought to Istanbul every year. At the end of the 19th century, the Syrian province of Damascus, Beirut, Tripoli, Acre, Hama, Balka and Havran had 8.203.888 sheep. In 1913, an average of 1.200.000 sheep were slaughtered in Istanbul.It was very important that the meat was timely and adequately prepared for the needs of the army and that it was shipped to the army area. Thousands of sheep were demanded for the expeditions. A total of 137.600 head sheep were taken from the Anatolian provinces for the 1585 Tabriz campaign. 1695 A total of 33.237 sheep and 4.086 cattle were purchased from Hüdavendigâr, Kütahya, Biga, Sigla, Karesi, Saruhan and Aydın for the Chios campaign. The army received the sheep and other needs in exchange for the price, and the property of the people was not forcibly confiscated.Livestock has created a wide employment area in terms of its characteristics and to make use of them. Many craft branches directly or indirectly related to animals have developed. Drover, butchers and monsters are the first professions that come to mind about animal supply and sale. Tanners are masters of the leather industry. Saddlers, pavilions, saddlery are tradesmen of the side branches of leather. In addition to cotton, which is the raw material of textile industry, cargo, goat hair and silk are also animal. Camelists, mules, sarbanans, grooms and shepherds are also related to animal husbandry. In addition to cotton, which is the raw material of textile industry, cargo, goat hair and silk are also animal. Camelists, mules, sarbanans, grooms and shepherds are also related to animal husbandry. In addition to the butcher shopkeepers in the cities, the shopkeepers, offalists, waxmen and kebab shopkeepers are professionals in every town. Considering the existence of all these professions in hundreds of cities in Anatolia and Rumelia, it will be seen that there is a large employment area around animal husbandry.On the other hand, the presence of animals was a major tax source. Sheep, buffalo, camel mule were subject to tax. In general, a sheep tax was charged to two sheep, while in the provinces that were flats of the sultan, a sheep tax was charged to a sheep.The soldiers and sayyids did not pay taxes on their sheep up to 150 sheep. Nevertheless, animal husbandry had a large share in the state revenues. In the 1860-1861 budget, the share of sheep tax in the state budget was 3,5%, which is an important denominator.Animals played an important role in transportation, transportation and expedition services. Camels, buffaloes, oxen, army’s cannons, ammunition and other weights were vital for the transport. To give an example, for the 1715 Peloponnese campaign, only 600 camels were taken from Ankara. As a result, animals have been the biggest helpers of agriculture, transportation, communication, war, migration and development of countries, technology development, in short, in all areas of life. Therefore, it should be a humanitarian duty for our future to be respectful to nature and to protect it against all these blessings.