The Vertebrate Breed Ontology (VBO)

The Vertebrate Breed Ontology (VBO) was created by the Monarch Initiative, in collaboration with the Online Mendelian Inheritance in Animals (OMIA), as a means of incorporating all breed names into a single computable resource. The first version of VBO was based on the Domestic Animal Diversity Information System (DAD-IS) breeds list created and maintained by the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and has been created using standard semantic engineering tools including the Ontology Development Kit (ODK).

VBO serves as a single, computable resource for vertebrate breed names. It is used in databases such as OMIA and veterinarian health records to make non-human information more computable and consistent, therefore enhancing data interoperability.

VBO is restricted to non-human vertebrate animal species. It covers breeds and breed populations for livestock, companion animals, and laboratory animals.