Livestock rearing has been a fundamental activity producing various commodities in the state of Nagaland for ages. However, livestock rearing in the state is still failing to catch up with other activities. The same old practice is continuing for a very long time and it is yet to see a revolution, as a result many livestock systems currently practiced are not economically viable.
The following are the few simple practices that can be done to make livestock farming economically viable.
Location: The area should be easy to access, have adequate water supply and maximum exposure to the sun. It should be at a higher elevation than the surrounding area to offer good slope for drainage of wastes and avoid stagnation.
Housing direction: The long axis of the house should be set in north-south direction as this position allows the house to acquire maximum benefits from the sun.
Integrated Farming System (IFS): Integrated Farming System is an interdependent, interrelated and often interlocking production system using a combination of few crops, animals and related subsidiary enterprises in such a way that maximise the utilisation of nutrients of each system and minimise the negative effect of these enterprises on environment. The interrelated, inter-dependent-interlocking nature this farming system involves the utilisation of primary produce and secondary produce of one system as basic input of the other system, thus making them mutually integrated as one whole unit. Integration provides higher yields, less vulnerability and more financial gain, compared to that in the use of monocultures or non-integrated livestock farming. In integrated farming there is better utilisation of all available resources, thus helping the farm achieve higher economic viability.
The following are some combination of Integrated Farming System practices used particularly for hilly regions.
• Pig, Fish and Agriculture.
• Cattle, Fish and Agriculture.
• Chicken, Fish and Agriculture.
It may be noted that, the manures generated from livestock contains substantial amount of nutrients and biomass which helps in rapid growth of Phytoplankton and Zooplankton and this serves as a source of nutrients for the fish. Further, indigestible feed ingredients present in livestock manures are consumed directly by the fish and occasionally, the bottom soil layer of the pond which is rich in biomass is applied in the field for agriculture farming.
Superior breed: Genetically superior breed means superior in-terms of particular set of characteristics i.e. more heat/cold tolerant, higher fertility rate and litter size, more resistant to disease, better feed conversion ratio (grow quicker) and higher quality produce. Hence, selection of the right superior breed leads to increased overall productivity and higher economic viability of the farm.
Health management: When an animal is having disease the body is designed to partition nutrients towards those processes so that the immune system is effective as a result nutrient requirement can increase by about 60%. This will result in more input - less output scenario and lead to heavy loss of resources.
Some simple and effective management practices to improve productivity and economic viability are as follows.
• Provide foot dip containing disinfectants at the entry of the farm.
• Regular cleaning and disinfecting of farm and farm premises.
• Keep animals suffering from contagious diseases in a separate house.
• Regular de-worming and timely vaccination of animals.
• Identify abnormal behaviour such as lameness, reluctance in taking food, abnormal breathing, fever, etc. and seek a Veterinarian’s help at the earliest.
• In case of outbreak of disease ban all visitors to the farm and consult a Veterinarian.
Record keeping: It is an important activity required for increasing farm productivity after all the ultimate profit or loss in a farm can only be found out by keeping proper records in the farm which includes data sheet of individual animal, total stock of animals, feed register, expenditure statement, etc.
It is felt that by following the few suggestions mentioned in this article, the people of Nagaland can substantially increase productivity, sustainability and economic viability of livestock farming.
Dziesevi Clement Vizo
3rd Year BVSc& AH,
College of Veterinary Science Khanapara
dziesevi@gmail.com