Factors Explaining Dairy Cattle Adoption Behaviour among Smallholder Farmers in Kenya

2013 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. 893-903
Author(s):  
Abayomi Samuel Oye
Keyword(s):  
Dairy Cattle ◽  
Smallholder Farmers

Adoption and Commercialization of Green Corn, Green Corn –Based Silage, Haylage and Ummb Production for Dairy Cattle in Cagayan Valley, Philippines

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 82-92
Author(s):  
Eva U. Cammayo ◽  
Nilo E. Padilla
Keyword(s):  
Dairy Cattle ◽  
Nutritive Value ◽  
Crop Residues ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Corn Silage ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Dairy Farmers ◽  
Feed Resources ◽  
Dry Spell ◽  
Dairy Animals

This research aimed to improve dairy production and increase the income of dairy farmers using locally available feed resources. Small-scale milk producers rely heavily on available feed resources in the locality which are either indigenous in the area or introduced species for feed and nutrition of their dairy cattle and buffalos. Their milk output depends mainly on seasonal fluctuations in the quality and quantity of natural forage. Crop residues such as corn stover and rice straw which are high in fiber but low in nutrients serve as a feed supplement and filler to the daily diets of dairy cattle and buffalos. Cagayan Valley is an ear of top corn and rice-producing region. The potential of crop residues as feed supplements or raw materials of dairy cattle/buffalo feed mix is great. But dairy farmers still face the scarcity problem of quality feed resources for dairy animals especially during the dry season. The supply of forage is very low during the dry spell. Inadequate feed mix and low nutritive value of feed mix result in low or no milk production. Producing green corn and ensiling it to produce green corn silage preserves and prolong the storage life of forages. In this way, a stable supply of feed mix for dairy animals is assured year-round. Type of Paper: Empirical. Keywords: adoption and commercialization, dairy industry, financial viability, green-corn silage production, indigenous grasses, smallholder farmers.

scholarly journals Communal Use of Breeding Bulls on Bull Stations, Natural Mating and Artificial Insemination in Ethiopian Smallholder Dairy Farming Systems

2019 ◽  
pp. 50-56
Author(s):  
Zemelak Goraga ◽  
Asnaku Funga ◽  
Tewodros Fekadu ◽  
Seid Ali ◽  
Gemeda Tuntuna ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dairy Cattle ◽  
Artificial Insemination ◽  
Mating Systems ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Dairy Farming ◽  
Sampling Procedure ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Natural Mating ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farming

The study was carried out to characterize Ethiopian smallholder farmers’ practice and indigenous knowledge on bull station service and adoption of different mating systems. A total of 62 respondents were selected from the smallholder dairy farming communities representing three districts in the Oromia region. A multistage sampling procedure was used to select sampling areas and respondents. A standardized questionnaire was used to collect qualitative and quantitative data using person to person interview. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistical procedures of SPSS. According to the findings of the study, Ethiopian smallholder dairy farmers are using both bull service and artificial insemination for dairy cattle breeding. The bulls used for mating are either those bulls kept for communal use at bull stations or bulls belong to individual farmers. The sources of all those bulls were research centers (15.5%), NGOs (37.5%), cooperatives (7.8%), born and grown at farmers’ own farms (10%) and other sources (29.2%). About 79% of the interviewed respondents were participants of bull station service and above 63% of them started to participate in less than a decade ago. In bull station, one bull did serve 3 to 30 females per week. In addition to the bull service, considerable numbers of farmers were using artificial insemination. The study revealed that both natural mating and artificial insemination methods are acceptable as appropriate mating systems and have their own advantage and disadvantages. So, bull service can be further adopted as an option for improving dairy production and productivity at smallholder farmers’ level particularly in areas where there is limited access for an efficient AI service. The study provided valuable information that can support the importance of using bull station services and adopt different mating systems to improve dairy cattle production and productivity in smallholder dairy farming systems in Ethiopia.

scholarly journals Conformation traits of dairy cattle populations in selected Districts of Northwestern Amhara, Ethiopia

2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 1669-1679
Author(s):  
MISGANAW MAMMO ◽  
KEFYALEW ALEMAYEHU ◽  
ASAMINEW TASSEW
Keyword(s):  
Dairy Cattle ◽  
Significant Variation ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Crossbred Cattle ◽  
Neck Length ◽  
Indigenous Cattle ◽  
Beef Breed ◽  
Breed Improvement ◽  
Female Cattle ◽  
Meat Type

Mammo M, Alemayehu K, Tassew A. 2017. Conformation traits of dairy cattle populations in selected Districts of Northwestern Amhara, Ethiopia. Biodiversitas 18: 1669-1679. The study was conducted in three selected districts of northwestern Amhara. The objective was to quantify the characteristics of conformation traits of dairy cattle populations at smallholder farmers' level. 279 cattle keepers were selected for measurement of conformation traits. About 105 indigenous cattle from each district and 42 crossbred female cattle were considered for measurement. SPSS (2007) was used to analyze qualitative data and SAS (2014) for quantitative data. The results revealed that the conformation trait measurements (cm) of indigenous cattle had significant variation (P< 0.001) on neck length for dairy type (54.07 ± 4.80) and meat type (51.96 ± 4.05) traits. The width at the point of the shoulder was 7.72 ±1.96, 6.60 ± 1.68 and 5.35 ± 1.61 for meat type, dual type and for dairy type cattle, respectively. A male cattle had significant variation over female except neck length. All qualitative traits were laid intermediate levels (4-6 point) except crossbred which was 63.64 %. About 30% of dairy type cattle had high rear udder depth and 43.33% dairy type cattle had strong central ligament. Crossbred cattle had 42.1% sickled rear leg. In general, about 57.5% dairy type cattle and 95.2% crossbred cattle have very angular shape as 75% of meat type cattle lack angularity. From this research, it could be concluded that there were significant differences of conformation traits between dairy type and beef type cattle from the cattle population considered in the study for developing specialized dairy or beef breed types. As well as indigenous dairy type cattle are comparable to other known dairy cattle breeds like Kanan, Fogera and Barka. However, farmers did not exercise in developing product specific and specialized breeds with their corresponding production system than multipurpose. Thus, selection and appropriate planed breeding program is crucial for future dairy cattle genetic improvement to match genotype and environment and meet producers’ production objectives. Hence, conformation traits can be a vital tool to make decisions on cattle selection and breed improvement.

scholarly journals Documenting the absence of bovine brucellosis in dairy cattle herds in the southern region of Malawi and the associated knowledge, attitudes and practices of farmers

2021 ◽  
Vol 92 ◽  
Author(s):  
John P. Kothowa ◽  
Ruth L. Mfune ◽  
Jacques Godfroid ◽  
Bernard M. Hang'Ombe ◽  
Martin Simuunza ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dairy Cattle ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Southern Region ◽  
Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay ◽  
Serum Samples ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Attitudes And Practices ◽  
Cattle Herds ◽  
Knowledge Attitudes And Practices

There is paucity of Brucella prevalence data in Malawi. For this reason, a cross-sectional study was conducted, from 06 January 2020 to 27 February 2020, to estimate the seroprevalence of brucellosis in dairy cattle herds amongst smallholder farmers, government and private dairy farms in the southern region. A total of 529 serum samples were screened for anti-Brucella antibodies using the Rose Bengal test (RBT) and a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (cELISA). A pre-tested electronic (Epicollect tool, Wellcome Sanger Institute, United Kingdom) questionnaire was administered to 378 smallholder farmers to assess their knowledge, attitudes and practices towards brucellosis. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the data in Microsoft Excel® and Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS®) version 21. No animal tested positive for presence of anti-Brucella antibodies, indicating 0% prevalence (individual and herd levels). The majority (94.2%; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 91.8–96.5) of smallholder farmers had never heard about brucellosis. Furthermore, assisting during parturition without protective equipment (41.3%; 95% CI: 36.3–46.2) and using bulls for breeding (75%; 95% CI: 70.2–78.9) were amongst the common risk practices that were identified. We could not detect brucellosis in this study that indicates the disease could be very rare or even absent in the dairy cattle herds of the southern region of Malawi. However, further Brucella studies need to be conducted in cattle, small livestock, wildlife and humans to document the true status of brucellosis in the country. Brucellosis surveillance, monitoring, awareness and preventive measures are required to maintain this favourable situation.

Effects of Retinoic Acid and 1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3 on IFN-gamma Secretion by Mononuclear Leukocytes from Nulliparous and Postparturient Dairy Cattle

2000 ◽  
Vol 70 (3) ◽  
pp. 92-101 ◽  
Author(s):  
Burim Ametaj ◽  
Brian Nonnecke ◽  
Ronald Horst ◽  
Donald Beitz
Keyword(s):  
Retinoic Acid ◽  
Dairy Cattle ◽  
Dairy Cows ◽  
Dairy Cow ◽  
Pokeweed Mitogen ◽  
Mononuclear Leukocytes ◽  
Combined Effects ◽  
Ifn Gamma ◽  
Dihydroxyvitamin D ◽  
1,25 Dihydroxyvitamin D

Individual and combined effects of several isomers of retinoic acid (RA) and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (1,25-(OH)2D3) on interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) secretion by blood mononuclear leukocytes (MNL) from nulliparous and postparturient Holstein cattle were evaluated in vitro. In the first experiment, effects on incubation period (24 to 72 hours) and time of supplementation (0 to 32 hours) with all-trans, 9-cis, 13-cis-, and 9,13-dicis-RAs (0 to 100 nM) on IFN-gamma secretion by pokeweed mitogen (PWM)-stimulated (0 and 10 mug/ml) MNL from nulliparous cattle were evaluated. In the second experiment, MNL from postparturient cows (bled at 0, 2, 4, and 16 days postpartum) were stimulated with PWM (0 and 10 mug/ml) in the presence of RA isomers (9-cis- or 9,13-dicis-RA; 0 to 100 nM), 1,25-(OH)2D3 (0 to 100 nM), or with combinations of these metabolites. The results show that individual isomers of RA had no effect on IFN-gamma secretion by PWM-stimulated MNL from nulliparous or postparturient cows. Furthermore 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 inhibited IFN-gamma secretion by MNL from nulliparous and postparturient dairy cows; however, the degree of inhibition was greater when 9-cis- and 9,13-dicis-RA were also present in the cultures. Finally mononuclear leukocytes from postparturient dairy cows produced substantially less IFN-gamma than did MNL from nulliparous cattle. It is concluded that retinoic acids individually did not affect the capacity of leukocytes from dairy cattle to secrete IFN-gamma. This result is in marked contrast to studies in monogastric species indicating that RAs inhibit IFN-gamma secretion by peripheral blood T cells. Inhibition of IFN-gamma secretion by 1,25-(OH)2D3 was potentiated by 9-cis- and 9,13-di-cis-retinoics acids, suggesting that an excess of dietary vitamins A and D may compromise further the naturally immunosuppressed postparturient dairy cow. Additional research is necessary to determine if the combined effects of these metabolites on IFN-gamma secretion represent an increased susceptibility of the dairy cow to infectious diseases during the periparturient period. Lower secretion of IFN-gamma by MNL from postpartutient dairy cows, relative to nulliparous cattle, suggests that recently-calved cows are naturally immunosuppressed.

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