DEBRE TABOR UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Department of Animal Science

Course: Sheep and goat production and management

By:
Birhanu Y.

March, 2023
Debre Tabor, Ethiopia
Course outline

1. Introduction
2. Types and breeds of sheep and goats

3. Sheep and goat production systems in Ethiopia

4. Reproduction and breeding of sheep and goats

5. Growth and development of sheep and goats

6. Sheep and goats feeding

7. Sheep and goat management

8. Routine husbandry practices and housing

9. Processing and marketing of sheep and goats products
10. Sheep and goat health care
11. Sheep and goat stress management, and welfare issues
1: Introduction
1.1. Common Terminologies used in Sheep and Goat production
Sheep
➢ Adult male -Ram/Tup
➢ Adult female- Ewe
➢ New born- Lamb
➢ Young male- Ram lamb/Tup lamb
➢ Young female- Ewe lamb/Gimmer lamb
➢ Castrated male- Wither/Wedder
➢ Castrated female- Spayed
➢ Female with offspring- Suckling ewe
➢ Act of parturition- Lambing
➢ Act of mating –Tupping
➢ Pregnancy- Gestation
➢ Sound produced- Bleating
➢ Group- Flock/herd/mob
Goat
➢ Adult male –Buck
➢ Adult female- Doe
➢ New born- Kid
➢ Young male –Buck ling
➢ Young female- Goat ling
➢ Castrated male- Wither/castrated goat
➢ Castrated female- Spayed
➢ Female with offspring- Suckling doe
➢ Act of parturition- Kidding
➢ Act of mating –Serving
➢ Pregnancy- Gestation
➢ Sound produced –Bleating
➢ Group- Flock/band
1.2. Origin and domestication of shoats

❖ Most domestication took place in western Asia where the majority of small
ruminant breeds originated.
❖ Shoats were domesticated before 10,500 years.
1.3. Geographical distribution of shoats
❖ Sheep and goats are widely distributed throughout the arid, semi-arid and
humid rainforest regions.
❖ However, their distribution can be influenced by agro-ecology as goats are
drought tolerant than sheep.
❖ Goat prefers the areas dominated by woody species (forest and shrub) for
their browsing nature.
❖ Sheep prefer grasslands than forest and shrub for their grazing behavior.
1.4. Advantages of small ruminant over large ruminants

➢ They have higher fertility rate with twin or multiple births.

➢ Have short generation interval to increase their production.
➢ Very low facility requirement.
➢ Their price is low (investment cost is low) so they have less risk to the
owner (the price, feed requirement and health care etc. of five sheep or
goats are estimated to be equivalent to a single cow.)
➢ Easy to manage
➢ Easier to home consumption –can be stored in refrigerator.
➢ Have an ability to survive in harsh environmental condition on low quality
and quantity of feed.
➢ Good feeding behavior (complementary to larger ruminants, particularly
goats)
1.5. Disadvantages of small ruminant keeping

➢ They are subjected to theft, because of their small size

➢ Not useful for draft power.
1.6. Potentials and constraints of shoat production in Ethiopia
• Potentials
Diversified and suitable Agro-ecology
High sheep and goat population
Feed accessibility (grassland, shrub, tress)
• Constraints

❖ Poor management (housing, nutrition, health care..etc)

❖ Poor market infrastructure, disease and parasite
❖ Drought, lack of technologies and inputs
❖ Inadequate extension and veterinary service
2. Types and breeds of Shoats

2.1. Methods of sheep and goat classification

• There are different distinct sheep/goat breeds in the world

• The classification is based on:
1. Origin or place of distribution: European, Asiatic or African

2. Tail type: long-tailed, short tailed, fat tailed sheep, Fat-rumped sheep, Long-
thick-tailed sheep.

3. Coat cover: Wool sheep, Hair sheep and Fur-bearing sheep

4. Function/use of sheep: wool type, meat type and milk type

…cont’d
▪ Origin

▪ Function are criteria to classify goat breeds.

▪ Body size (large, small and dwarf).

2.2. Exotic breeds of sheep and goat breeds

❑Exotic sheep breeds

1. Dorset

• Originated in U.K and are horned.

• Face, ears and legs white in color and free from wool.

• Produce 2.75 to 3.25 kg wool and superior quality mutton.

• Rams weight -80 to110 kg and ewes weight - 50 to 80 kg.

• It is a hardy breed and capable of performing well under most conditions.

2. Merino
• The most popular fine wool breed of the world, originated in Spain.
• It is a white faced sheep with white feet.
• Rams have horns whereas the ewes are hornless.
• Most of the head and legs are covered by wool.
• They able to survive under adverse weather and poor grazing conditions.
• The ewes live and yield longer than any other breed.

3. Rambouillet
• Originated in France.
• This breed has a large head with white hair around the nose and ears.
• Rams have horns and ewes are hornless.
• Rams weigh as much as 125 kg and ewes up to a maximum of 90 kg.
• It produces an excellent fine-wool fleece.
• The fleece is heavy, close, compact, covering most of the body including face and
legs.
4. Dorper sheep
▪ The Dorper is a South African mutton breed

▪ It is hardy and can thrive under range conditions where other breeds can barely exist.

▪ One of the most fertile of sheep breeds that is hornless with good body length and a
short light covering of hair and wool.

▪ The breed has the characteristic black head (Dorper) as well as white heads (White
Dorper).

5. Awassi

▪ It is the most numerous and widespread type of sheep in southwest Asia.

▪ The head of the Awassi is long and narrow with convex profile.

▪ Fully adapted to the sub-tropical environment.

▪ They are known for wool, but also produce mutton and milk.
1. Dorset 2. Merino

3. Rambouillet 4. Dorper 5. Awassi

Exotic goat breeds
1. Saanen

❖This breed originates from Switzerland but has widely spread all over the world.

❖Large in size and have a white coat.

❖Females obtain weights up to 65kg and males till 75kg.

❖With good management, these goats produce on average 3 liters of milk per day.

2. Alpine

• Originates from the Alp region in Europe.

• They have a good size and a variety of color (from black to white).

• Their weight is 60 kg and 65 kg respectively for females and males.

• The breed has excellent potential for both milk and meat production.
 3. Boer
❖Originated in South Africa.

❖The color is almost always white (with a brown neck and a black or brown head).

❖They have good fertility and are well muscled.

❖They can be very heavy, with males weighing up to 130 kg and females 80 kg.

❖Mainly kept for meat production but also have a reasonable potential for milk.

4. Kalahari Reds

❖Come from the Kalahari Desert in South Africa.

❖They are naturally adaptable and less susceptible to disease and parasite infestations
than other breeds.

❖Can survive under poor conditions

❖ They have red color that makes them less prone to predators, and they have
excellent mothering abilities.
 1. Saanen 2. Alpine

3. Boer 4. Kalahari Reds

2.2. Breeds and common characteristics of Ethiopian shoats

• Different types of sheep have been identified in Ethiopia.

1. Black head Somali (Fat-rumped type)

➢ Also known as Ogaden and Berber black head
➢ Short hair
➢ They have large deposit of fat on the rump and at the base of tail
➢ They have dewlap, thin tail which hangs downward
➢ Black head with white body and legs
➢ They give little milk but are known for meat and skin
➢ Kept by nomads
2. Adal (Fat- rumped)

➢ Distributed in Dankil and Awash

➢ They are white or reddish in color
➢ Known for their high-quality meat
➢ Kept by nomads
3. Abyssinia (Ethiopia)- Fat tailed type
➢ Found throughout the highland area of the country
➢ They have long hair on the back of sheep’s neck and shoulder
➢ Mostly brown colored, but may black or white
➢ Adapted to crop livestock (mixed) farming
4. Menz (Fat-tailed)

➢ Found in Menz and Selale area of Shewa

➢ Red, black and white in color
➢ Males are horned
➢ They are wool type
➢ Kept for wool production and meat
➢ Adapted to mixed farming
5. Farta sheep
➢ Found in South Gondar, Belesa and Dembia
➢ Short fat tailed and medium size
➢ Commonly white, but may be brown and black
➢ Males are horned
6. Washera

➢ Found in West Gojjam, East Gojjam and Awi Zone

➢ Short fat tailed and large body size
➢ Brown color is common
7. Arsi- Bale (fat –tailed type):
8. Tucur- (fat tailed type):
9. Horro-(thin tailed type)
10. Keffa sheep: (thin tailed type)
• Goats in Ethiopia are classified into four families.

1. The Nubian family

❖ Originated in Iran and Israel
❖ Adapted in arid and semi-arid area
❖ Found in north west of Ethiopia, around wogera on the border with Sudan
….Cont’d

❖ Known for their milk (dairy goats), but meat is 2nd product
❖ They are tall with brown color
❖ Kept by nomadic people
2. The Rift Valley family: under this family, there are different goat types, like
• Abergelle
• Afar
• Arsi Bale
• Woyto Guji
• Worre
3. The Somali family: Under this family, there are different types of goats that
are known for their higher milk yield and higher survivals in harsh
environment. These include:
….Cont’d

• Short eared Somali goats they are white in color

•Long eared Somali goats
•Hararghe highland goats – white, brown, black
4. The Small East African family: This family includes;
• Western highlands (Agew)- have twin births
• Western lowland (Gumuz)- known by twin birth even greater than Agew
• Central highland- found in Dega and wyina dega
• Keffa goats.
3. Sheep and goat production systems in Ethiopia

• Based on the degree of integration with crop production and contribution to

livelihood, level of input and intensity of production, agro-ecology, land use
and type of commodity to be produced it can be classified as follows.

3.1. Highland sheep–barley

▪ Found in the highlands above 3000 m.a.s.l. where the major crops grown
are barley and pulses.
▪ Temperature is the main factor determining productivity.
▪ Sheep are the dominant species.
▪ The main feed resource-base includes wasteland grazing, stubble and straw.
▪ Sheep flock sizes range from 30 to several hundred head.

▪ Sheep are reared mainly for meat, skins and coarse wool production
3.2. Mixed crop–livestock

▪ Found in midland areas- integration of crops and livestock is high.

▪ Both sheep and goats are raised, but sheep are more dominant

▪ Small ruminants play an important role for food security and food self-
sufficiency.

▪ Livestock (cattle) -are dominant and kept mainly for draft power

-the main cash source to purchase agricultural inputs.

-used as a savings and insurance mechanism.

▪ However, shoats are kept to meet small and immediate cash needs.

▪ Meat is the primary product, skin and wool are secondary.

…..cont’d

▪ The major feed resources are natural pasture and crop residues.

▪ There is nutritional stress due to more cultivated land area so it need to

intensify.

▪ It is low input / low output system.

3.3. Pastoral and agro-pastoral production systems

I. Agro-pastoral:

 Practiced below 1500 m.a.s.l.

➢Higher RF to support short season crops compared to the pastoral system.
➢Less integration with crop production as compared to the crop–livestock

production systems.
 Producers have a permanent residence and their movement is limited in
terms of both distance and duration.
 Some crops are produced around the permanent homestead.
 High degree of dependence on milk and meat production.
 This is also a low input / low output system.
II. Pastoral:

 It is found at altitudes below 1500 m.a.s.l.

 The area is too dry to sustain crop production.
 These are characterized by little or no crop production and high mobility of
livestock in search of grazing and water.
 Livestock are maintained as a principal activity.
 Rangeland is the main land resource.
 There are more goats than sheep in this system.
 Milk and meat are the main outputs.
3.4. Urban and peri-urban

 Practiced within and at the periphery of cities.

 Feed resources are usually:

✓Household wastes

✓Market area wastes

✓Mill leftovers

✓By-products and roadside grazing (particularly in the peri-urban

system).

 It could either be a high input / high output or low input / low output
system.
3.5. Ranching

 Ranching is a range-based system of production similar to the pastoral

systems but with different production parameters, livestock functions and
management.

 Management is characterized by grazing within defined borders, intensified

feeding and watering of animals.

 Ranching can be considered as a modern land use system.

 It is a labor-extensive system focusing on the production of marketable

commodities.

 Mainly produce live slaughter animals for meat.

 The main function of the system is to generate cash income.

4. Reproduction and breeding of sheep and goats
4.1. Reproductive system
• The reproductive system of the females consists of:
❖ Ovaries- site of egg formation and secrete female reproductive hormones
(progesterone and estrogens).
❖ Oviduct- is involved in sperm transport to the site of fertilization, provides a proper
environment for ova and sperm fertilization (Site of fertilization), and transports the
subsequent embryo to the uterus.
❖ Uterus- where the embryo implants and develops
❖ Cervix- it is the gateway to the uterus. It participates in sperm transport, and during
pregnancy, blocks bacterial invasion.
❖ Vagina- is the site of semen deposition during natural mating and also birth canal
❖ Vulva- exterior portion of the reproductive tract. It is a barrier for preventing
external contamination of the female reproductive tract.
4.2. Hormones controlling reproduction
❖ FSH; stimulates the growth and maturation of follicles
❖ LH; stimulates ovulation (release of ova from follicle)
❖ Estrogen; regulate the occurrence of estrus/heat
❖ Progesterone; secreted from corpus luteum (CL)which maintain pregnancy and
inhibit the release of estrogen.
4.3. Reproductive performance
There are different indications of reproductive performance sheep and goat;

1. Age at puberty
• Puberty in female is defined as age at which estrus cycle starts and the young
female allow a male to mount and mate her.
• Puberty occurs from 6-8 months for sheep and 5-8 months for goat, but we should
wait until 8-12 months for better productivity.
• Live weight is used to determine the right time for mating rather than age.
• 50-70% body weight of mature female
….Cont’d
• The age at which puberty occurs varies according to;
✓ Breed; smaller breed reaches earlier age at puberty, because in large breeds
the fat may prevent the development of follicles to release estrogen that
induce estrus
✓ Nutrition; related with the growth and development of body and
reproductive organs.
✓ Health; healthy animal may reach puberty earlier
✓ Presence or absence of sexually mature males: sight, sound, smell
encourages sexual maturity
2. Age at first lambing/kidding
• There is a big variation among production systems and breeds for this trait
(12–24 months).
• It is usually late in animals living in harsh environments.
3. Post-partum interval (PPI)- is the period of time from parturition until the
next ovulation.
4. Parturition interval (lambing/kidding interval)- is the period of time
between two lambing or kidding.
5. Fertility- the natural capacity to produce offspring.
6. Litter size (LS)- the number of offspring produced at one birth by
an animal.
7. Annual reproductive rate- the number of offspring produced per year per
animal.
4. 4. Reproductive behaviour
• Estrus, or heat, is the period of time when the female is sexually receptive to the ram
or buck.

• The estrous cycle is the period of time from the beginning of one heat period to the
beginning of the next. Length of estrus cycle is 18-21 days and 15-19 days for doe and
ewe respectively.

❖Signs of estrus in does and ewes are:

• Continuous bleating
• Wagging of tail from side to side
• Redness and swelling of the vulva
• Mucus discharge from the vulva
• Mounting of others, and allowing to be mounted by others
• A lack of interest in feeding
• Drop in milk production in some lactating does/ewes
❖the signs of estrus in ewes are less noticeable than in does
4.5. Mating management
1. Random mating: mating of individuals regardless of any physical and genetic
preference.
• The rams/bucks are all the time with the flock
• Great number of ewes per ram (50-80:1).
• High annual conception
• Disadvantages are: difficult to use selective breeding, too short inter-
lambing/kidding interval, too early mating, danger of inbreeding.
2. Organized mating
• Ewes/does are put with the ram at regular intervals (every 7-9 months) for a
predetermined period of time (40-45 days - longer than two cycles)
• Usually one ram is enough to 25-30 ewes.
Advantages of organized mating
• Genetic quality of the flock is improved through use of selected rams.
• Proper interval between lambing
• No too early mating
• Births can be grouped together and lambing can be controlled
• Supplementary feeding can be provided based on the physiological status
• Health measures can be planned for the flock
4.6. Breeding systems employed in shoat production
➢ Types of Crossbreeding
✓ Grading-up; involves successive use of pure breed ram or bucks on the indigenous
ewe or does.
✓ Continuous production of F1s; crossing two different animal breed to produces
F1 hybrids.
✓ Rotational crossing: female offspring resulting from a cross between two breeds
are cross to a ram of 3rd breed and F2 from 2nd cross are then breed to a ram of one
of two breed.
✓ New breed formation: the formation of a gene pool (the set of all genes or genetic
information)
• It combines desirable traits from different breeds
• After the 1st cross, F1 animals are mated together to form F2 followed by an F3
4.7. Selection of breeding stock

❖Breeding stocks must possess desirable characteristics/traits.

➢Reproduction
✓Age at first mating and lambing
✓Number of born
✓Litters per year
➢Weight
✓Birth weight
✓Pre-weaning gain
✓Weaning
✓Post-weaning gain
✓Slaughter
➢Maternal ability- Temperament, milk yield
➢Fleece- weight, diameter, fineness
➢Carcass- yield
….cont’d
❖Selection: it is process of deciding which animals in a generation will be
allowed to become parents of the coming generation.
Methods of Selection
Performance testing: select on the base of their own performance
• For highly heritable traits like growth rate
Pedigree selection: select based on performance of their parents
• Used if there is no information on individual performance
• For traits only observed at later age e.g; milk yield
Progeny Testing: select based on the performance of their own offspring
• Useful when selecting sex limited traits (if you need to select buck of dairy
goats, you may use the milk yield of offspring as a base of selection)
Collateral Selection: select on the based on the performance of their relatives
• Mostly it’s not effective
Method of selection for more than one trait
I. Tandem selection
• A single trait is selected at a time and when one has been improved to a
certain level in the flock, then 2nd trait will be selected and the 3rd trait will
continue.
• Only for positively correlated traits
II. Independent culling levels: certain level of performance may be 1st
determined/ established for all of the traits chosen to be selected.
• Any animal can’t meet the established level of performance will be culled
out.
• No excuse if an animal is poor in 1 trait and superior in another.
III. Selection index: there is greater emphasis on traits with high heritability
and greater economic importance
• Low performance of one trait may be compensated by superior performance
5. Growth and development of sheep and goats
5.1. Definition of development and growth
➢Growth: means an increase in size and mass of a particular organism over a
period of time.
➢Development” is defined as “a process wherein a particular organism transforms
itself from a lone cell into a more complicated multicellular organism.”
5.2. Pre and postpartum growth and development

➢Animal growth and development can be separated in to processes occurring before

birth (prepartum) and occurring after birth (postpartum).

➢Egg sperm Fertilization Zygote

➢The resulting zygote develops in the uterus for a certain period of time known as
gestation.

➢Length of gestation in shoat is approximately 150 days.

Prepartum growth and development
❖It is classified in to two stages:
I. Embryogenesis:- the formation and development of an embryo.
➢The zygote develops in to morula, which becomes the blastula, and then the gastrula.
➢ Zygote is a single cell that is repeatedly cleaved to form a multi-celled ball known as
morula.
➢ Cleavage is a process that involves miotic division of the original cell in to two cells,
which then divide in to four cells and then eight cells.

❖The cells of morula are rearranged to form a hallow sphere filled with fluid called
blastula. The fluid-filled space inside the sphere is called the blastocoel.
…cont’d
➢The blastula undergoes a process known as gastrulation and becomes a gastrula.

II. Organogenesis:- is the phase of embryonic development that starts at the end of
gastrulation and continues until birth.
➢In the first few weeks after conception, cells differentiate in to organs and body
structures.
➢The body structures continue to grow and develop until birth.
…cont’d
➢Body tissues and organs are formed in a specific sequence;
✓The head is formed before
✓Then, the tail and spinal cord are formed before other organs
Postpartum growth and development
❖The period of postpartum growth extends from birth until death
❖Muscle, bone and fat are the three main types of tissue that develop as animal grows.
❖Postnatal growth of muscle is characterized by increases in length and diameter.
❖Bones have the capability of increasing in width and can repair themselves, if broken
❖Fat tissue is comprised of fat cells and connective tissue
❖Fat cell increases in size depending on the nutritional status
❖Fat is deposited in four different area throughout the body or carcass
✓The fat deposited in the abdominal cavity around the kidneys and pelvic area is
called intra-abdominal fat, it is the first fat deposited.
…cont’d
✓Fat deposited just under the skin is referred to as subcutaneous fat or back fat, and
is usually the largest amount of fat deposited.
✓Fat between the muscles of animals is called intermuscular fat,
✓While fat deposited within the muscle is called intramuscular fat.
✓The level of intramuscular fat is referred to as the degree of marbling and affects
the quality and taste of meat.
5.3. Factors influencing growth and development
1. Genetic factor: genetic composition of an animal determines it’s potential for
growth and development.
❖Breed: growth and development differ between breed
➢Birth weight of individuals may be affected by the litter size , the availability of
uterine space.
➢The growth from birth to weaning is significantly affected by the amount of milk
produced by dam.
…cont’d
➢Large and late maturing breeds (Dorset) are still growing when they reach
conventional market weight and carrying less fat.
➢Small and early maturing breeds (Suffolks) have just finished growing when they
reach desirable market weights and are frequently carrying higher proportion of
fat.
❖Disease resistance: means reduce the harm caused by disease by preventing
infection or limiting subsequent pathogen growth and development within the host.
❖Feed conversion efficiency: is a ratio or rate measuring the efficiency animal’s body
converts feed in to the desirable output.
2. External factors: an animal never reaches its genetic potential for growth,
fattening, milk production and developmental process, if diet and
environmental conditions are not optimal or favorable.
…cont’d
❖Nutrition: shoats require a certain level of nutrition for the normal
development and body functions.
➢But additional nutrients are required for optimal growth of muscle and fat.
❖Disease: any form of disease negatively impacts the growth and
development of shoat.
➢Sickness usually requires nutrients for recovery and reduce feed intake.
➢Some disease also creates long term consequence that impair the animal’s
ability to graze, digest and absorb nutrients.
❖Parasites: Both internal and external parasites cause:
➢Decrease appetite and intake
➢Decrease wool production
➢Inhibit normal digestive function
➢Permanent internal tissue damage
6. Sheep and goats feeding
6.1. Nutrient requirement
• Sheep and Goats required nutrients for different purposes;

➢ Maintenance
➢ Growth
➢ Reproduction
➢ Lactation
➢ Wool production
➢ Extra activity
6.2. Feed intake and feeding strategies
➢ Available feed resources
▪ Natural pasture and browse
▪ Crop residues
▪ Agro-industrial by-products
▪ Leaf strips from maize and sorghum
….cont’d
➢ Strategies for ensuring appropriate nutrition of sheep and goats include
▪ Matching production systems to available feed resources;
▪ More efficient use of agricultural and industrial by-products
▪ Encouraging increased intake
❑ Intake varies with:
➢ Physical structure of feed and moisture content of feed
➢ Productive status: Lactation > Gestation > Maintenance
➢ Late Gestation > Mid and early gestation
➢ Triplets> twins > single
➢ Breed: Milk type shoats > meat type
➢ Environmental factors: Summer > winter
➢ Age and weight
➢ Energy concentration in the feed
….cont’d
• Water is also essential for digestion of feed, absorption of nutrients, for body
metabolism and homeostasis.

It’s requirement depends on;

1. Feed intake
2. Environmental temperature
3. Level of production
4. Concentration of salt in water and feed
6.3. Ration formulation
➢Ration formulation involves the selection and allocation of feed ingredients.

➢Sheep and goats are most productive when fed a ration balanced according to their
nutrient needs.

➢There are many methods of formulating rations useful for various situations.

➢But Pearson square method is the easy one.

When only two feeds are involved
• Necessary to determine what combination of feeds will give a mixture with the
desired content of a particular nutrient.

Example:

• A sheep producer wants to formulate a Concentrate supplement that provides 16%

Crude protein. He has shelled corn (9% CP) and Cottonseed cake (40% CP). What
combination of the shelled corn and cottonseed cake will provide a mix of 16% CP
the producer wants?
• Solution:
a. Draw a square at the left side of the page;
b. Insert the % CP desired in the final mixture (16) in the middle of the square;
c. Place corn with its percent CP (9) on the upper left corner and the
cottonseed cake with its CP (40) on the lower left corner;
d. Subtract the % CP desired (16) from the % CP in corn (9) and place the
difference (7) without the negative sign at the corner of the square
diagonally opposite the corn (on the lower right side of the square);
…cont’d
e. Subtract the % CP desired in the final mix (16) from the % CP in
the cottonseed cake (40) and place the difference (24) at the corner of
the square diagonally opposite from the groundnut cake (at the upper
right corner of the square). The above remainders represent
proportions of the two feeds that will provide a mix containing the
desired % CP.
f. The amounts can then be converted to a percentage basis and then
to any other weight basis (e.g. quintal /kg/ ton/) as desired for mixing
purposes.
INGREDIENT PROPORTIONS ON % BASIS ON A QUINTAL BASIS
Corn 9 24 (24/31)*100=77.4 77.4%*100= 77.4Kg corn
16

CS Cake 40 7 (7/31)*100=22.6 22.6%*100=22.6Kg CS Cake

TOTAL 31 parts 100 100 Kg (Quintal)

• Thus, mixing 77.4% corn (9%CP) and 22.6% Cottonseed cake (40%CP) will provide
a mix of 16% CP.
Check:
• You can check whether the final mix really contains the desired Crude Protein
(CP) level by calculating the contributions of the ingredients constituting the
mixture (corn and CS cake) and summing up.

- Contribution of corn = (9*77.4)/100=7

- Contribution of CS Cake = (40*22.6)/100=9
• Total CP in mix = 7+9 = 16%
7. Sheep and goat management
1. Dry ewes/does: Dry period is from weaning to mating approximately after 3 –4
months of kidding/lambing.
❖It is time of recovering from the stress of previous pregnancy and lactation:
✓Good quality pasture, hay and supplementation may be necessary
2. Pre breeding → breeding
• Flushing: is feeding the ewe/doe 2 weeks before breeding
✓ feeding concentrate or good quality pasture is important.
❖ Flushing may increase:
• Lambing percentage by increasing the number of eggs ovulated;
• LP= No of lamb born alive X 100
No of ewe exposed to ram
• Embryo survival.
..cont’d
3. Early → mid-gestation: nutrient requirement is slightly above maintenance for
placental development and growing embryo.
❖ Inadequate nutrition can have an effect on embryo implantation
❖ Maintaining body condition is also required
4. Late gestation:
❖ 70% of fetal growth occurs during last 4-6 weeks of gestation.
❖ The mammary system is developing.
❖ Rumen capacity is decreasing.
➢ So, during this period proper feeding management is crucial for successful
lambing/kidding, if not there will be;
• Disease
• Give lighter lamb at birth
• Post-natal death
• Less mothering ability and milk production
..cont’d
5. Lactating ewe/doe:
❖It also depends on litter size.
❖If there is breeding and nursing at the same time- needs supplementation to support
both functions
6. Lamb/Kid nutrition: -
 Give colostrum: it’s the first milk produced by the female.

• Rich in maternal antibodies/means of passive immunity and nutrition.

❑Lamb/kid should receive colostrum in the first few hours after birth (with in 24
hours) since:
❑The ability of the new born to absorb antibodies from colostrum decreases after
24 hours.
❑Supply of antibodies in colostrum also decreases rapidly after birth.
7. Young lamb/kid nutrition:
• for the first weeks all may obtained from the mother's milk
• From 4 to 6 weeks old, they may be obtaining 50% of their nutrient intake from
other sources.
• Creep feeding, providing extra nutrients in addition to nursing, is also important to:
o increase weaning weights;
o Reduce lamb/kid mortality;
o Have early weaning.
8. Weaning/removing the milk diet:
• Average is 60-90 days.
• Weaning causes stress:
To reduce nutritional stress the following activities are important;
✓ Introduce solid feed as soon as possible.
✓ High quality young forage with free choice.
✓ Free choice supplementary legumes.
9. Buck/ram:
• Breeding males should be kept in a good condition and fed with adequate
amount of feed.
• Avoids over and under feeding that reduces libido.
• If they are under confinement, exercise is required to avoid obesity that
hinders mounting and sperm production.
8. Routine husbandry practices and housing
8.1. Routine husbandry practices
8.1.1. Identification methods
▪ Animal identification is the basis for keeping accurate production records of the
herd/flock.
▪ Accurate records provide the producer with enough information to make individual
or whole herd/flock management decisions.
….cont’d
❖Ear Tags: is the most commonly used identification method in all species.
❖The tag has specific number.
✓Ear tag applicator is used
✓Easy to use, flexible, inexpensive and easy to read.
✓It may become lost if not applied properly.
 8.1.2. Routine managements
❑Castration
Why castrating?

• When there is surplus male for breeding.

• Castration of male goats eliminates odors in the meat.
• Ease of herding and to prevent indiscriminate mating.
• Methods of castration

• Knife; crude method and not encouraged.

• Bloodless castration; crushes spermatic cord by using Burdizzo
castrator.
• Tying a cord around the scrotum
….cont’d
❑Tail Docking: cutting off the tails of sheep using knife or docking iron.
It is important for;
• Ease of mating especially for hair sheep
• Sanitary measure
• Docking may be dangerous, as it diminishes the ability to protect themselves against
flies.
• Lambs shall be docked at very young age (about 8 days old).
Fig1. Docking by docking iron Fig2. Docking by knife

Fig 3. undocked ewe Fig 4. Docked ewe

….cont’d
❑Hoof trimming
Flocks should be checked on a regular basis for hoof growth.
Overgrown hooves may make;
✓Walking painful;
✓Predispose the animal to other foot and leg problems
✓Competing for feeding difficulty.
✓Susceptible to joint and tendon problems
This may cause to stop eating and exercising.
❑Body weight estimation:
Heart girth; The measure taken around the chest just behind the front leg and withers
 Useful for body weight estimation
 Body weight can be calculated using this formula;
….cont’d
• Body weight (pound)= heart girth2(inch) x body length (inch)
300
• Hint; 1pound=0.45 kg and 1 inch=2.45 cm
Where; C= shows heart girth
a-b= shows body length
….cont’d
❑Age determination by dentations: knowing the age of sheep and goats is important
to;
➢ Decide when to cull
➢ Choose shoat to purchase
➢ Decide when to mate
➢ Select among them
➢ Adjust for age differences
➢ Have a good estimate of reproductive performance
Table3; Estimated age for shoats with different numbers of erupted permanent incisors

No. of permanent Estimated age range

incisors erupted Goat
Sheep

0 pair Less than 1 year Under 1 year

1 pair 1-1½ years 1-2 years

2 pairs 1½-2years 2-3 years

3 pairs 2-3years 3-4 years

4 pairs More than three years. More than four years

Wide spacing between

6-8 years 6-8 years
the teeth

Broken mouth Aged Aged

Fig1. (1 pair) 2 incisors are permanent Fig2. 2 pair are permanent Fig.3. 3 pairs

Fig4. 4 pairs (full) are permanent Fig.5. Wide spacing between the teeth Fig.6. Broken
8.2. Record keeping
1. Record keeping: is the activity of keeping records (data) from the farm.
➢Easy way to improve management
➢Making problems/constraints visible - is a first step in problem solving.
➢We may record different data like:
▪ Breeding records
▪ Health records
▪ Financial records
▪ Production records
Farmers should be convinced to the value of recording.
If they feel, we are forced to keep those records- it may not be as accurate and
reliable.
8.2. Housing and handling facilities
❖ To establishing a new shoat farm- selection of farm site is imperative.
❖ The site should be possibly near to;
➢ The main road and market
➢Veterinary services
➢Concentrate feeds for supplementation
➢Water, electricity and equipment.
➢Foundation stock should be available
➢Enough land for grazing and fodder production.
…cont’d
❖ The type of housing depends on the type of production or management
system.
❖ Housing is influenced by the environmental factors like;
1.Temperature: Animals need shelter in order to reduce effect of heat.
▪ High temperature results;
✓loss of water
✓reduces feed intake and performance of animals.
2. Humidity: high humidity is high cause for respiratory diseases, especially
goats.
✓Good ventilation is required to maintain a fresh air.
3. Rainfall: The housing should be water proof to protect animals from rain
because excessive wetting of animals can cause for pneumonia.
Types of shoat houses
1. Ground level housing
• Common in the arid and semi-arid areas where rainfall is not excessive and no
danger of flooding.
• It can be built as a single building or attached to the existing building.
• The floor can be made from clay or concrete material.
• The roof may be made form leaves, bamboo, banana, grass and iron sheet
2. Stilted housing
• The floor is raised above the ground level about 1.5 m.
• The floor can be made of wooden or iron slats with perforated opening to facilitate
easy cleaning/ dropping and collection of manure and urine.
• The space between slats must be enough (2 cm) to allow the manure to fall
✓But should not too wide to prevent trap of animal’s leg.
• It is useful where there is high RF and danger of flooding
…cont’d
• In addition to the main house, other buildings are required in shoat farm; like

o Isolation room- to isolate sick animals

o A dipping bath- for regular dipping of animals against external parasites
o Lambing/kidding pen
o Office and store ---etc.
9. Processing and marketing of shoats’ products
9.1. Market classes (grades) and marketing of live animals
• Market classes are type of animals that are produced or raised for marketing.

1. Feeder lambs/kids: are animals that are fed and fattened on a high plane of nutrition
after weaning.

2. Slaughter Animals: Produced directly by the producers and they may sale cull
animals like: rams/bucks, castrates and old or sterile ewes/does.

3. Pure–bred breeding stock:

▪ Are animals with superior genetic make-up -for wool or mutton production

▪ Used as breeding stock or reproduction.

▪ They are produced both for domestic markets and export.

Types of live animal marketing:
• Animals are marketed through different ways:

1. Direct dealing; direct negotiation between seller and buyer.

▪ sold at a farm/village level or local markets to the consumers.
▪ Gives an opportunity to look into the individual animals and decision.
▪ Prices are determined based on subjective and objective price factors such;
➢Conformation
➢Sex, age
➢color, live weight and carcass weight of animals.
2. Order buyers:

▪ Through an agreement between the producers and buyers (processing plant, fatteners,
hotel, exporters).
▪ The producer may regularly delivers/supplies his animals at a regular time.
▪ Used to limit the number of animals based on the demands of the buyers.
….cont’d
3. Marketing through a commission firm:

▪ Companies may take animals from the producer and sell them for the consumers.
Pure-bred animals are mostly marketed through:
1. A direct dealing between buyer and seller

✓The buyer judging the individual animals based on the records of its own or pedigree
performance.

2. Auctions sale:

✓Animals may be sold on per head basis or on small groups.

✓The initial price may be suggested by the owner.

✓There is competition between buyers and may be sale by bid.

9.2. Slaughtering and carcass processing
• Slaughtering sheep and goats differs from place to place

• Depending on the religious and cultural/traditional of people.

➢ Slaughtering Systems
1. Religious Slaughter: an animal remains conscious at the time bleeding.
• Animals are not allowed to die immediately otherwise meat may not be eaten.
• Mainly used by Muslim and Jewish people.
• It suffers animals.
2. Traditional Slaughter:
• Animals are first suffocated by placing hands over the mouth and nostrils.
• Eventually an animal die.
• After the death of an animal, the jugular vein is slit and all blood will be collected
for consumption either in fresh or cooked form.
3. Humane Slaughter:
• First animals are made unconscious by mechanical or electrical means.
• Then the throat is slit with a knife and animal body is allowed to bleed.
• An animal is unconscious at the time of bleeding.
• Animals are less suffer and pain (painless slaughter).
• Then the animal can be hung up by its hind legs and skinned and cut the
carcass in the local manner.
❖Whatever the method, most shoats are slaughtered at the homestead because
of limited abattoirs.
Advantages of the use of abattoirs:
1. Increases revenue collection.
2. Gives better public health protection.
3. Facilitated disease control and eradication programs.
4. Source of information on the quantity and quality of meat produced and per
capita consumption of meat.
❖Slaughtering animals’ results/yields the following components:

 Carcass meat (45.2%): The part that remains after all internal organs, head,

feet and skins has been removed.

 Offal and By-products (27.3%): Offal consists of internal organs such as

lungs, trachea, heart, liver and spleen, kidney, which can be partly eaten or
processed.
 Slaughter Losses (27.5%): This includes blood, moisture, contents of

gastrointestinal tract which may be also eaten partly.

…..cont’d
❖Meat may be eaten in the form of raw meat, boiled/cooked, fried and dried.
❖Offal, by-products and bones- are used to manufacture meat, blood and bone
meal.
❖Hooves and horns are used for ornaments or to produce fertilizers.
➢ Carcass Yield (Dressing Percentage)
• Carcass Yield (Dressing Percentage) is the proportion between the carcass
and body weights.

• Dressing percentage = Carcass weight/Body weight*100%.

Dressing percentage is influenced by:
1. Breed: There are breeds of animals that yield higher carcass weight.

2. Degree of fatness: Well fattened mature sheep may exceed 60 % DP.

3. Age of animals: Young animals yield low carcasses as compared to mature,

because muscles and bones have yet not well developed in young animals.

4. Body fill or gut-fill: It is amount of feed material in the gastrointestinal

tract.

➢Its presence increases body weight and underestimates (dressing percentage).

• To estimate the carcass yield, an animal starves for about 12 – 24 hrs. or at

least for 8 hrs. before slaughtering.

• Starving an animal reduces the gut fill and thereby increases the dressing
percentage or carcass yield.
9.3. Processing and marketing of wool
Wool production:

❖It is produced from wool breed sheep like Merinos and Rambouillet.

❖ Raw wool as it comes from sheep with all foreign materials is termed as fleece.
❖ Foreign material in the fleece is termed as shrinkage.
❖ The foreign material/shrinkage are removed by washing with soap.
❖ The washed/cleaned and dried wool is termed as scoured or cleaned wool.
❖ Fine wool shrinks more heavily than coarse wool (fine wool contains more dirt than
coarse wool).
❖ Shearing of wool should be take place after washing of sheep
❖ They should be washed 2 – 3 days before shearing to reduce foreign materials in
the wool.
❖ Shearing can be done by the use of Knives, hand shears, machine shears and
chemical shearing.
….cont’d
• Marketing of wool: the price of wool is determined by quality measures:

• The quality measures are:

1. Color: Color is important to make pattern.

➢In hand processing, locally, patterns are made with natural color fibers

➢But in processing plants colors are produced by dyeing or soaking them a

colored solution.

➢White colored wool is considered as better-quality wool than others.

2. Fineness of wool: Fine wool is more valuable than coarse wool, because
fine wool is mainly used make luxury clothing

➢Coarse wool is used for blankets and floor coverings (mats).

3. Length of the wool:
• Long wool is more valuable and demanded than short.

• Length is inversely correlated with fineness.

4. Strength of the wool: stronger wool is more demanded, because strength

determines the working property and wastage of wool during spinning.

5. Cleanness of the wool: A raw wool/fleece as it is sheared will contain

foreign materials.

❖ Cleanness is influenced by the management/ hygiene condition of the

housing.
❖ The quality measures stated under 1 to 4 are influenced by breed.
❖ Strength is determined by the nutrient content of the diet, where a low
nutrient content and sickness of animals may result in weaker wool fiber.
…cont’d
❖Generally, wool production involves activities like;
❑Proper feeding and management
❑Washing of the wool
❑ Removal of shrinkage from the raw fleece by washing again
❑Grading and packing (baling) of wool.
❖The other valuable by product from shoat (small ruminant) is Skin.
10. Sheep and goat health care
10.1. Factors that predispose animals for disease

• Maintaining sheep and goats in a good heath condition

✓Increase or maintain performance

✓Increase survival of animals

✓Increase the overall economy of the farm

There are different factors that predispose shoat for disease:

• Poor house design and sanitation,

• Poor nutritional management,
• Stress full environment
• Stock mobility
• Climate change - drought
Prevention and control of diseases

❖Most of disease can be prevented by the following measures

• Good feeding management: used to develop high immunity level

• Hygiene (house, animals, materials)
• Housing (ventilation)
• Vaccination
• Spraying and dipping
• Hoof trimming
❖These measures can control about 80-90% of disease.
10.2. Major shoat diseases and prevention and control mechanisms

Internal Parasites

1. Round worms

 It affects the digestive tract and lungs tract.

 It causes weakness, loss of weight, diarrhea and anemia (reduced red blood
cells).
 Treatment- medication
 Control - management of pasture (rotational grazing).
2. Tape worms

 Long flat like worm

 It may be affected tissues, organs and small intestine.
 Pasture management and sanitation are possible means of control measures.
3. Liver flukes
 Flat worm
 It affected body organs like; liver, bile duct and gallbladder.
 Symptoms are the same as round worm infection.
 Control involves destruction of the intermediate host (snail)
External parasites

• Mites, ticks, lies are main external parasites

• The following diseases are caused by those parasites.

1. Heartwater:
 It is tick born disease and transmitted by a vector tick.
 Temperate breeds are more susceptible to this disease.
 Indigenous breeds are able to resist this disease.
2. Babesiosis
 A disease caused by a parasite Babesia.
 It is transmitted by ticks.
 The ticks introduce into the blood stream of the host and Babesia invade
the red blood cells.
3. Nairobi Sheep Disease

 It is a tick-borne viral disease of shoat.

 The disease is distributed in east Africa.
 It may not have effective treatment.
4. Trypanosomiasis
 A disease caused by protozoa (trypanosome)
 Transmitted by biting insects, mostly by flies (tsetse flies).
 Blood from an infected animal is taken into the intestine of the tsetse fly.
 They multiply for about 10 days, after 20 days they move to salivary glands
and injected to other animals.
 There may be mechanical transmission: by other biting insects:
Principal sheep and goat diseases
1. Anthrax
 It is an acute infections disease caused by bacillus anthracis (a soil borne
organism that can survive for many years).
 Almost all animals are susceptible to it.
….cont’d
 A dark bloody discharge from body openings and sudden death are
indicators.
 Preventive vaccination is possible to prevent the disease.
 The body of an animal should not be opened to prevent contamination of
the whole flock and area.
 The carcass should be burned or deeply buried.
2. Anaplasmosis:

 Transmitted by ticks, biting flies and contaminated needles and equipment.

 It is caused by rickets anaplasma avis.
 It invades red blood cells and causes anemia, weakness and emaciation of
an animal.
 It can be controlled by dipping and spraying animals.
3. Black leg:
 It is caused by a bacterium clostridium chauvoe.
 This disease affects mostly sheep.
 It is an acute infectious bacterial disease of sheep
4. Contagious Caprine Pleuropneumonia (CCPP):

 It is an acute pneumonia of goats.

 It is caused by mycoplasma.
 The disease affects only goats and results in high death rates of animals.
 It results significant economic loss (60-100% of infected animals may die)
 It is highly contagious disease and can be transmitted from one animal into
another up to 100%.
 Vaccination and quarantine are important preventive measures.
5. Pest des Pettis Ruminants (PPR)
 This is a highly contagious viral disease of goats.–sometimes it affect sheep
 It can cause 70-90% mortality rates in goats.
 Haven’t treatment, but controlled by vaccination and quarantine.
6. Pneumonia
 This is an infection of lungs which is caused by a combination of different
micro-organisms like bacteria and viruses.
 It occurs in housed animals due to poor ventilation and can be also triggered
by stress due to space problems.
 Fast breathing, nasal discharge, coughing and fever are common
symptoms.
 10.3. Forms and causes of diseases:
❖Diseases can be classified as either hereditary or acquired ones.

1. Hereditary diseases are caused due to disease causing factors that are
carried on the genes (defective genes).

▪ Transmitted from parents to offspring and they are relatively few in number.

2. Acquired diseases are caused due to a complex interrelationship of an

animal with its environment or determinants of diseases.

▪ Determinants of disease are factors that affect occurrence of disease.

I. Host: may be resistant or susceptible to a particular infectious agent

▪ e.g. Anthrax can affect all mammals but birds are resistant to it.

▪ FMD affects all livestock except horses.

2. Environment:
▪ Change in temperature and humidity may cause respiratory disease
(pneumonia).

▪ Soils help to preserve spores of Anthrax.

▪ Both the host and the agent are influenced by the environment.

3. Agents of diseases: are necessary for the occurrence of disease

▪ Parasites, viruses, bacteria and fungi are sources of animal diseases.

4. Nutrition:

▪ A well-fed animal is better able to defend a disease-causing agent through

high immunity.
5. Stress:
• Excessive cold & excessive heat cause stress.

• Any stress reduces immunity & makes an animal susceptible.

6. Lack of tolerance:

• Animal may be tolerant to a certain disease adaptation.

• Temperate breeds may lack tolerance to some tropical diseases as compared

to tropical breeds.

• e.g. Goats lack tolerance to intestinal parasites which are caused due to
grazing infected pasture.
7. Lack of immunity:
• Sufficient immunity levels (antibody) helps to fight against antigen.

• It can be acquired:

A. Naturally: through suckling colostrum immediately after birth (passive

immunity).

• A naturally acquired active immunity is developed when a low level of

organisms infects an animal large number of antibodies is produced to fight
the infection.

B. Artificially: An animal may be injected low levels of the infective

organisms artificially in the form of vaccines.

• An animal may develop immunity (artificially active immunity).

11. Sheep and goat stress management, and welfare issues
Major stress factors

➢Excessive cold & excessive heat environment

➢High humidity

➢Lack of feed and water

➢Transportation

➢Separation from their flock.

Methods to reduce stress

➢Provide appropriate nutritional requirements

➢Keep feed, water and handling equipment clean

➢Keep in same environment

…cont’d
➢Change diet gradually after a week

➢Overcrowding should be avoided, especially for long-distance hauling.

➢Injured or sick animals should be transported separately

➢Proper design of housing and handling facilities for sheep simplifies their movement
and protects their health.

➢Housing units must have adequate ventilation to prevent pneumonia.

➢Limit visitors entering to sheep farm

Sheep and goat welfare issues

❖Animal welfare refers how an animal is coping with the conditions in which it lives.

❖An animal is in good state of welfare if it’s healthy, comfortable, able to express
innate behavior and not suffering from unpleasant states such as pain, fear and stress.
…cont’d
❖There are different welfare issues in shoats:

✓Castration: which is normally done without anesthesia.

✓Tail-docking- which is carried out with a knife.

✓Transportation

✓Slaughtering