aistand south~ern afrkca - (PDF, 101 mb) - USAID

Table 4. Milk production and reproductive
peronnanceofMpwapwa cattle at
Bereg/.
SD 2
Parameter N' Mean
Milk yield (kg) 3
30 1626 .3
Daily milk yisld 30 5.5 1.1
(kg/d)
Lactation length 30 300 17
(days)
Calving Interval 18 498 97
(days)
Age at first 10 33 9.7
calving (months)
1. Number of observations.
2. Standard deviation,
3. Mill yield for the first three lactaticas and
excludes tho ,,',ount suckled by the calf.
The mean lactation yield of the Mpwapwa
cattle at Berege was within the values reported
on-station (Mpiri, 1982; Mkonyi, 1983, Kasonta,
1988). The similarity was expected since the
general cattle management practices were more
or less similar.
The mean age at first calving was 33 months
and is lower than the range of 37-50 months
reported on-station (Katyega, 1981; Getz et al,
1986; Kasonta, 1988). This might probobly be
due to the fact that farmers mated their heifers
at an earlier age compared to thoue on-station
where a strict mating schedule (after attaining
200 kg or at two years) was adhered to. On the
other hand, it can not be completely ruled out
that heifers on-farm attained an optimum
liveweight at first mating (Stobbs, 1967) much
earlier than those reared on-station. This could
be possible due to a faster growth rate resulting
from better feeding and general management of
the relatively smaller herds.
The mean calving interval of498 days, witha
standard deviation of 97 days is within the range
reported earlier (Das et al, 1986; Kasonta, 1988).
The apparently longer calving interval of .he
Mpwapwa cattle at Berege may be associated
with a number of factors, such as inability of the
farmer to detect heat, early embryonic mortality
and the failure by the farmers to obtain the
oreeding bull at the correct time (Kasonta et al,
1990). The long calving intervals of the
Mpwapwa cattle on-station may be attributed to
some level of sub-fertility due to moderate undernutrition
and the rigid mating seasons (Kasonta,
1988).
In general, the milk production and
reproductive performance of the Mpwapwa
cattle under farmer management in Berege does
not differ significantly from that et LPRI,
Mpwapwa. However, some other management
aspects deserve mention at this point. The
86
farmers who were keen to establish and manage
the IFGs, were able to get adequate feeds to carry
their animals through the dry season, hence
maintaining milk production and growth of the
animals for a relatively longer time than those
who were not. This fact may explain the observed
variations performance. in milk production and reproductive
Similarly, a good proportion of the cooperating
farmers, especially those with donkey
carts adopted the technology of collection and
conservation of cereal stovers under shed in the
fields near the cattle kraals fRr use during the
critical feed shortage period. However, the
farmers who did not own donkey-carts stacked
the stover loose in the fields near the homesteads.
It has been deduced that those farmers
who had adopted the feed conservation
strategies that were recommended had adequate
feeds for their 'vestock. This enabled their
animals to remain in production and in good
condition for longer periods (Kasonta et al, 1990).
During the diagnostic survey, it was observed
that a local water melon ecotype was intercropped
in cereal fields, and fed to cattle during
the dry season mainly as a source of water. This
was a local initiative and technology in the area,
that attracted the interest of researchers and
hence warranted further study and development.
A quick survey was conducted in Berege
Village in the 1988/89 season as a follow-up to
this. The objective was to gain an insight to the
melon production characteristics within the
existing farming system (Kusekwa et al, 1990).
The results of the survey revealed that the
spacing between the water melon plants within
the intercrop situation ranged from 0.5 to 11.5 m
giving a plant population of between 1000 to
6000 plants/ha. The fruit numbers ranged from
3000 to 20,000 per ha with a fresh weight per
fruit of 1 to 27 kg, giving an estimated one
hectare yield of 5 to 10 tons (Kusekwa et al,
1990). The details of the nutritional aspects of
the water melons have recently been
documented (Shayo, 1992).
Implementation priblems and solutions
The most recent report showed that the
Mpwapwa cattle population at Berege had more
than tripled, i.e. the total populatlon was over 70
(Anon, 1991). About 16 head of cattle, momtly
bulls, had been sold either within the vi!age er
at auction markets outside Berege, at prices
ranging from TSh 65,000 (US$ 217) o T.Sh
120,000 (US$ t100) per animal depending on
where they were sold. There are implications to
this. Fprmers realised that they could mauke
substantial profit by selling their surplus
animals at auction markets rather than within
the village and that if an oppropriate breeding
programme was not adopted, inbreeding would
soon become a serious problem hind.ring further
improvemen', in livestock productivity. To