The study investigated the quality and production of village chickens in wet and dry environments. Three hundred households were interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire. Both external and internal characteristics were measured in 4 000 eggs using visual observation and laboratory…
The first objective of this study was to assess Marandu palisade grass in an integrated crop-livestock system (ICL), and two integrated crop-livestock-forest (ICLF) systems. The first ICLF had a single row of eucalyptus (ICLF-1L) and the second had three rows…
Dairy goats have been imported into Tanzania since the 1960s to improve the milk production of Small East African (SEA) goats through crossbreeding. The SEA goats have poor genetic potential for milk. Although crossbreeding programmes started in the early 1980s,…
The production performance of ewes was assessed in a terminal crossbreeding experiment involving five Merino and Merino-type dam lines and two terminal crossbreeding sire breeds. Dam lines were SA Mutton Merino (SAMM), SAMM rams crossed to Merino ewes (SAMM cross),…
Results are presented of a study of a smallholder goat production system in the Boane district, southern Mozambique. Goat keepers (n = 65) were selected and their goats (Landim breed) (n = 770) were recorded and monitored over two years…
South African indigenous does in rural communal farming systems kid for the first time at approximately 17 to 18 months of age. Does conceive at a relatively low body condition score (BCS ≈ 2.5 to 3) and their average litter…
The influence of sire breed and breed genotype of dam on calving interval (CI) and cow productivity (CP) in Afrikaner, Hereford, Simmentaler and Bonsmara cattle, as well as in Fl, and two- and three breed rotational crosses between Afrikaner, Hereford…
Productivity of Simmentaler heifers, first mated at 14 months of age (2 M) compared to the traditional system of mating at 26 months of age (3 M), was investigated under extensive farming conditions. Both first calving (60.8 vs. 79.5%) and…
