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Introduction To Animal Production Section of - (AGR1231 1631) 2024

The document outlines various livestock production systems, including extensive, semi-intensive, and intensive methods for cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, and poultry. It discusses the importance of land, finance, and management strategies in livestock farming, as well as the characteristics and advantages of different breeds and production systems. Additionally, it highlights the role of livestock in food security and ecosystem services, emphasizing the need for proper management to optimize production and sustainability.

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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
35 views52 pages

Introduction To Animal Production Section of - (AGR1231 1631) 2024

The document outlines various livestock production systems, including extensive, semi-intensive, and intensive methods for cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, and poultry. It discusses the importance of land, finance, and management strategies in livestock farming, as well as the characteristics and advantages of different breeds and production systems. Additionally, it highlights the role of livestock in food security and ecosystem services, emphasizing the need for proper management to optimize production and sustainability.

Uploaded by

morethejaco839
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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AGR 1231

Agriculture and Human Kind

Prof JJ Baloyi
Department of Animal Science
[email protected]

Ext 9006

Office #16 Building #218 Former School of Agriculture


LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION SYSTEMS
• Animals include livestock and undomesticated animals

• Livestock: Animals raised by man for food, non-food products and work.
• Livestock farming produces food on 57% of the land that cannot be directly used for
crops (marginal land), providing ecosystem services.
• Animal production, in particular herbivores, contributes to food security by utilizing
grazing marginal land that is not able to produce plant products.

• Types of livestock:

➢ Ruminant animal
➢ Non ruminants (monogastric animals)
Livestock

• Main categories of livestock are:

➢ Large ruminants

A B
➢ Small ruminants –

B
A
The digestive system of a ruminant
The digestive system of a Pig (Monogastric animal)
Non-ruminant grazing animals –
C
A

B
Non-ruminant, non-grazing animals.

A B C

D E F
Resources for livestock production
1. Land

➢Land is an important complementary to livestock.


➢Calculation of land availability and of land-livestock ratio is only useful if the quality of
the land is considered.
➢The quality of land for livestock production and crop production can be characterized by
the length of the growing period.
➢In the tropics, the growing period depends on moisture availability rather than
temperature, which is an important factor in the temperate zones.

2. Finance
Livestock products and uses
• Foods – Meat, milk, eggs
• Materials – These are non-food livestock products that can be regarded as farm
outputs.
• Major livestock materials:
➢ Hides, skin, pelt,
➢ Wool,
➢ Hooves,
➢ Offal e.g., Intestines
➢ Manure used for:
• soil fertility, as
• fuel and building material
➢ Work: Livestock are used for work in the following ways
• Land improvement e.g. contour ploughing, drainage,
• Soil preparation: ploughing, hoeing, harrowing
• Crop husbandry: seeding with drills
• Crop processing: threshing
• On-farm transport
• Off-farm transport: trade and marketing
Production systems of livestock

Livestock production systems:


• Extensive livestock production systems
✓ Ranching systems
✓ Pastoral range
• Semi-intensive including Crop-livestock production systems
• Intensive production systems e.g. Feedloatting
Cattle breeds of Southern Africa
• Sanga breeds:
• Sanga cattle are thought to result from crossbreeding between thoracic-humped
Lateral Horned Zebu and humpless Egyptian Longhorn cattle.
e.g., Afrikaner, Nguni and Drakensberger.

• Zebu breeds:
• Originated from the hybridization of zebu with indigenous African humpless
cattle. e.g. They include Red Fulani, Ankole-Watusi, and Boran

• European beef breeds: Charolais, Hereford, Simmental, Shorthorn

• Dual-purpose breeds: Dexter, Simmental and Shorthorn

• Dairy breeds: Jersey and Holstein/Friesian


BEEF PRODUCTION SYSTEMS
BEEF PRODUCTION SYSTEMS
There are three production systems

Weaner production from a herd consisting mainly of breeder


females with or without intensive finishing of
the weaners after weaning

Steer production raised to slaughtering age from a herd consisting


of a small proportion of females

Speculative beef either with steers bought in at various ages or


production speculation with cows and calves
1. Weaner Production systems

• Calves are sold at 6 to 9 months of age.


• It is the most popular system but not necessarily the most profitable.
• Weaner production systems are also limited in elasticity.
• During drought, when cows are thin and numbers must be reduced,
demand is poor, and prices are low.
• Risks involved in the weaner production system are bull infertility,
reproductive diseases and calf mortality.
Basic requirements for successful weaner production
• Sufficient annual rainfall for a long pasture-growing season.
• Alternatively, crop residues must be available
• The cattle breed or type used must be adaptable to the environment and production
system to maintain a high level of fertility and yield heavy calves at weaning.
• Above-average managerial skills are required for proper pasture and range
management and for supplementary feeding programs.
• Management in terms of reproduction and disease control and a meticulous record
system to support selection are required
• For the success of the program, a weaning rate higher than 75% is required since
the reproductive rate is fundamental to the success of the weaner production
system.
2. Steer production system
• With this system, there is flexibility in herd composition, especially
in areas with poor rainfall.
• In these regions, the female component of the herd must be
reduced, and the steer component must be increased.
• In areas where rainfall is poor, cow/calf herds must be totally
abolished.
• Reproductive efficiency is less critical with steer production than
with weaner production.
Steer production system (cont.)

• All systems need supplementation on veld, especially during drought periods.


• Breed or type selection is an important factor in the finishing of steers.
• Early-maturing breeds or types realize better economic returns under range
conditions; late-maturing types cannot be marketed at an acceptable age without
supplementation.
• In arid areas, with low and unreliable rainfall, cow and calf herds are not
recommended; steers should be obtained elsewhere for rounding off in good years
and for flexibility in numbers in poor years.
3. Speculative production system
• This can be highly profitable when done properly.
• This is a flexible system and provides an opportunity to exploit fluctuations in cattle prices
and grazing quality to build up an efficient herd.
• During winter and spring or seasons of poor rainfall, pregnant cows or cows with calves can
be bought at substantially lower prices.
• Once rains have started, or when crop residues are ready, highly profitable gains in weight
can be obtained.
• Alternatively, only calves can be marketed, and cows can be bred and sold even when
pregnant.
• The system calls for great skill and understanding of beef and cattle prices.
• The disadvantage of the system is that there is a risk of dissemination of diseases.
SHEEP AND GOAT
SHEEP AND GOAT PRODUCTION SYSTEMS
• Production systems vary from extensive free-range systems to
controlled grazing or zero-grazing feedlots.
• The type of system to be adopted depends on the environment, the
product, the degree of control required, and the preferred
management program.
Extensive system
• This system is found in the Karoo, Northern and Western Cape Province,
Southern and Western parts of Namibia and Botswana.
• These areas are characterized by:
1 Low rainfall
2 Sparse vegetation of xerophytic and succulent shrubs together with
mainly annual grasses most of which are palatable with high
nutritional values.
3 Desert-type climate- large diurnal and seasonal temperature ranges
Extensive system continued…….
• Controlled extensive grazing systems are used successfully in the Karoo, Kalahari, Southern
and Western Namibia and Southern Botswana where sheep and goats are kept in large
flocks.
• In the more moderate climatic areas, sheep and goats are grazed either separately or in
combination with cattle, since each species grazes and forages a different spectrum of
herbage.
• Livestock may be overwintered on crop residues
Extensive system continued…….

• Extensive systems are suited for wool production with Merino sheep and meat
production with Merino, Merino types, Dorper sheep and Karakul sheep for pelt
production.
• Goat meat is produced from Pedi and Boer goats.
• Sheep yield more secure income in arid regions because of continued wool growth
during dry seasons and more rapid recovery after droughts.
• They are physiologically adapted to semi-arid conditions and more tolerant to
saline drinking water since high salinity is a feature of bore-hole water in the drier
regions.
Goats are better adapted to harsh extensive conditions than sheep or
cattle because they are:
• More heat tolerant
• Can withstand dehydration
• Can survive on very low planes of nutrition, utilizing desert shrubs and coarse
roughages
• Browsers and their bipedal stance gives them an advantage over sheep with
bush and trees
• More active and selective
• Able to walk long distances in search of food and relish a variety of feeds
• Can digest coarse, fibrous feeds more efficiently than sheep or cattle
• Some goats yield milk for human consumption; Angora yields Cape mohair.
Management of small stock

• Small-stock production systems are geared to schedules and goals.


• The management programme for an extensive farming system is
cyclical, being closely aligned to nature.
• Management requires a strategy with contingency plans to deal with
natural phenomena of droughts, sudden cold snaps, heavy downpours
and disruption of services such as stock-watering supplies.
To establish a general management program, the following must be known :
• Natural resources, environment and topography of the area in which the farm is located
• Impediments to production e.g. diseases, parasites, predators, poisonous or unpalatable plant
species
• The livestock genetic potential and characteristics
• The requirement tolerances and peculiar need of livestock such as:
• Nutrient needs for every phase of production
• Reproductive characteristics e.g. ratio of females to males, mothering ability, twinning etc.
• Resistance to endemic diseases
• Tolerance of variable water supply
• Tolerance to the general environment
• Growth and product characteristics
These elements form the basis of a general management
strategy. This in turn is formulated from the following sub-
strategies:

• Finance (cash flow, capital improvement)


• Fodder flow (grazing, supplementation according to seasons and metabolic needs)
• Product improvement (selection, performance testing)
• Breeding (breeding seasons, breeding stock replacement)
• Product marketing and price fluctuations
• Labour
• Parasite and disease control
Semi-intensive and intensive systems
• Intensification can improve production dramatically even up to
the extent of 50% in total animal live weight per hectare.
• Intensification is possible only in areas of good rainfall.
• Increased production through intensification can be achieved by:
▪ increasing the number of breeding females
▪ increasing the proportion of breeding females in the flock
▪ increasing the output of the breeding flock
▪ an early marketing age of a high-quality carcass
▪ increasing the rate of reproduction
Semi-intensive and intensive systems continued…..
• Prerequisites for intensification
• High annual rainfall
• Good soil quality
• These lead to high yields because of the long growing season.
• A major restriction is the dramatic seasonal drop in pasture quality
during the dry season.. A well-planned fodder flow program is essential.
• Management of an intensive system requires a high standard of
expertise geared to schedules and goals.
• A particularly important factor in intensification is stress and the
build-up of diseases for which proper preventive planning is required.
• As in the extensive system, the critical periods that require intensive
management are during the breeding season, at lambing, weaning
and, in the case of woolled sheep, at shearing.
Sheep breeds available to fit any production system and region as
shown below:
BREED SYSTEM ENVIRONMENT
Sheep
Merino Extensive wool Semi-harsh
production environment
SA Mutton Merino Semi- Semi-harsh
intensive/intensive environment
wool production
Karakul Extensive pelt Harsh low-rainfall
production environment
Afrino Extensive wool and Harsh environment
meat production
Dormer Semi-intensive meat Semi-harsh
and wool production environment
Dorper Extensive meat Harsh low-rainfall
production areas
Dohne Merino Extensive meat and Sour veld, semi-harsh
wool production
Ile de France Semi-intensive meat Temperate climate
and wool production
Vandor Extensive meat and Harsh environment
wool production
Van Rooy Extensive meat Harsh environment
production
Goats breeds
BREED SYSTEM ENVIRONMENT

Angora Extensive or Semi-harsh


intensive mohair environment
production
Boer goat Extensive meat Subtropical bush
production veld
Indigenous Extensive meat Harsh
breeds production environments

Pedi Damara
and Namaqua
Afrikaner
PIG PRODUCTION SYSTEMS
Production systems

• Three production systems are available


✓Scavenging
✓Tethered or confined in the backyard or village
✓Small, medium, or large commercial units, where the
animals are either penned or allowed to range in a paddock
Scavenging
• This system is found in rural areas.
• This system is not recommended for hygiene and productivity reasons.
• The pigs are allowed to scavenge for themselves.
• They have poor reproductive and growth performance, high mortality rates,
and are highly susceptible to internal and external parasites.
• Pigs are intermediate hosts for tapeworm (Taenia solium), and scavenging
pigs have a greater chance of becoming infested and transferring the
parasites to humans when the meat is inadequately cooked.
Tethered or confined

• This system permits control over the animal.


• The animal can be fed chicken waste and crop by-products.
• It is a popular system in many tropical and subtropical countries in
Asia, Africa, and South America for producing meat for consumption.
• Another advantage is that pig manure can be composted with other
organic materials to produce organic fertilizer for gardens.
Commercial units
• The objectives of this system are to produce breeding animals and produce meat as
efficiently as possible.
• The piggery may be either a complementary unit to other farming enterprises to utilize
by-products and waste or it may form the main farming enterprise.
• In recent years, piggeries have become highly intensified and technical.
• However, the total efficiency of this system is under question because of the high
capital investment per productive sow and the cyclic nature of the pig market.
• The mode is now switching to a semi-intensive system in which producer sows are
allowed to roam freely in large paddocks or fields and are only confined at the time of
farrowing.
• Mortality rates are not higher under these circumstances than in intensive systems.
POULTRY PRODUCTION SYSTEMS
POULTRY PRODUCTION SYSTEMS
• What is poultry?
• Domesticated birds raised by humans for food and other products. Includes chicken, ducks, geese,
turkey, and guineafowl.

• There are several systems in poultry production and the one adopted depends on:
✓ Space
✓ Time
✓ Finances and inclination
✓ The needs of the hens themselves
The systems of poultry production are:

1. The free-range system


• This system is suitable for people with a lot of land and fields
of pasture.
• The chickens graze the stubble after harvest, obtain their food
in this way and rid the field of insect pests and weed seeds.
• Normally a movable house is provided on the field and this is
moved from place to place
The free-range system continued……
Advantages

• Birds find their own food and therefore feeding cost are greatly reduced
• The birds help to spread cow dung when they follow cattle
• The droppings of the birds themselves help to fertilize the soil.

Disadvantages

• Losses to predators are high


• Eggs are often laid in hidden nests and may be stolen or eaten by dogs or wild animals
• In cold winter many birds die and egg production is greatly reduced
Advantages

• Grazing is controlled
• Fresh grass is available all the time
• There is no build-up of droppings with consequent parasites and
diseases
• The hens are safer from predators
2. Semi-intensive system

• This system requires a permanent house with access to two plots of


grazing area.
• The hens have access to each plot in turn while the other is rested.
• The number of birds kept depends on the amount of land available.
• The floor of the house is covered with straw.
• Lighting in the house ensures that winter egg production does not
decline.
3. Deep-litter system
• This system is more intensive.
• The hens are not let outside at all.
• They are housed in a large building with a straw- or litter-covered floor and
electric lighting.
• The litter build-up is removed once a year and provides valuable compost for
vegetables.
• The hens are free to walk around and peck in the litter.
• The year-round protection from cold and rain together with artificial lighting
ensures a high level of egg production.
4. The battery cage system
• This system is used commercially.
• It involves keeping the hens in individual cages within a large, controlled
environment.
• Droppings fall straight through the cage floor, and feed and water are
available automatically on demand.
• Each time an egg is laid, it rolls onto a collection trough.
• This system produces a high number of eggs.
Battery cages for laying chickens
Battery cages for laying chickens
Battery cages for laying chickens

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