Improvement in Food Resources

Livestock
Livestock refers to all domestic animals that are used to produce food and other valuable products for man. It includes cattle, buffaloes, sheep, goats and pigs. Livestock may be milk producing or meat providing.
Milk Producing Livestock
These are milch animals. the milk-producing animls reared in out country are cows, buffaloes, goats adn camels. Goat's milk is very nutritious. Goats can be milked anytime of the day. However, the production of goat's milk is far less compared to that of cows and buffaloes. Buffalo's milk has higher fat content than cow's milk. Buffalows are the major source of milk in our country.
Cows breeds and their distribution
Cattle Breed Distribution
Milch Breeds
Gir Gujarat, Rajasthan
Sahiwal Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh
Red Singhi Andhra Pradesh
Draught Breeds
Malvi Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh
Nageri Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh
Hallikar Karnataka
Kangayam Tamilnadu and other parts of South India
General Utility Breeds
Haryana Haryana, Bihar, Punjab, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh
Ongole Andhra Pradesh
Kankrej Gujarat
Tharparkar Andhra Pradesh
Draught Breeds
Draught breeds are basically beasts of burden. They are used for drawing bullock carts, ploughing land and transporting material from one place to another. They are strong and sturdy but give less milk.
Dairy Breeds
These cows are reared for yielding milk. The bullocks are not suitable for draught purposes.
Milk production during lactation
Dairy. Breeds of Cow Average Milk Production (Litres) Lactation Period (Days)
Sahiwal 2800 300
Holestein-Friesian 16000 365
Frieswal 5000 326
Indian Breeds
Red Sindhi
This cow is medium in size and red in colour with dark and light shades of red.
Sahiwal
This is a large, heavily built cow and is of a superior breed.
Gir
This breed is found in Gujarat in the Gir forest. This cow is medium in size and is a good milk yielder.
Other well known breeds are Dangi, Deoni, Tharparker and Haryana. They are dual purpose breeds and fairly good milk yielders.
Foreign Breeds
The following are some exotic breeds of cows that have been successfully crossbred in India.
- Jersey hails from Island of Jersey, USA
- Holstein Friesian hails from Holland
- Brown Swiss hails from Switzerland
Cross Breeds
The following are some improved breeds of dairy cows that have been developed in our country at the National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI), Kamal. Haryana.
- Karan Swiss: This is a crossbreed between Brown Swiss and Sahiwal
- Karan Fries: This is a cross breed between Holstein-Friesian and Tharparkar
- Frieswal: This is a cross breed between Holstein-Friesian and Sahiwal
With cross breeding the yield of milk has inc:eased by two or three times more than the yield from Indian cows.
Buffaloes
Buffaloes are reared in large numbers in India. There are more than ten different breeds of buffaloes in India. Of them, the high milk yielding breeds are:
Murrah
This originally belongs to Punjab and Haryana. The average yield of milk is 1800 to 2500 litres with 7% fat.
Mehsana
This breed hails from Vadodara and Mehsana districts of Gujarat. The average yield is 1200 to 2500 litres. They start yielding milk at a young age and have regular breeding intervals.
Surti
This breed is a native of Kaira and Vadodara districts of Gujarat. The average yield is 1600 to 1800 litres. The fat content is about 8-12%. This breed is highly adaptable.
Distribution of Buffaloes
Buffaloes Distribution
Nili Ravi Punjab, Haryana
Nagpuri Central and south India
Mehsana Gujarat
Surti Rajasthan, Gujarat
Jaffarabadi Gujarat
Bhadawari Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh
Murrah Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh
Milch Animal Management
For effective livestock management and improvement in yield the following steps should be taken care of.
Shelter
Shelters should be constructed in such a way that it provides a comfortable resting place for the animals. It must contain facilities for feeding, watering and protection from rain, wind, Sun, cold and dampness. A shed measuring six square metres is ideal for Indian cows. Buffaloes require a little more space. Proper cleaning of the shelter is necessary not only for the production of clean milk but also for the health of the animal. The floor of the shed must be sloping, to facilitate cleaning and keeping their resting place dry. The shed should have cross ventilation with sufficient number of inlets and outlets.
Nutrition
The food of dairy animals needs to serve two basic purposes:
Maintenance
This is the food required to support the basic functions oflife of the animal
Milk Production
This is the type of food required during the lactation period.
Animal feeds have tWo main contents:
Roughage
This includes fibres like green fodder, silage, hay and leguminous plants like berseem, lucerne and cowpea.
Concentrates
This contains high cOntent of proteins and other nutrients but is low in fibres. These include grains of maize, oats, barley, jowar, gram and by-products of agriculture like wheat bran, rice bran, gram husk, oil seedcakes and molasses. A balanced feed, which contains all the nutrients in the right proportion, is supplied to the cattle. On an average the daily ration for a cow is 15-20 kg of green fodder and 4-5 kg of grain mixture. In addition nutrients in the form of additives are mixed with the feed. These additives contain antibiotics, minerals and hormones. They increase the yield of milk and protect them from.diseases. Finally cows need 30-40 htres of water to drink.
Breeding
Indigenous dairy breeds produce 6-8 litres of milk a day where as foreign exotic breeds produce 60 litres of milk a day. Even the lactation period (period when milk is produced) is longer. To improve the production of milk of our Indian cows, crossbreeding progr~mmes are conducted at various dairy research centres. The different types of breeding methods are:
Inbreeding
The process of mating among closely related individuals is known as inbreeding. Bulls that are healthy and strong are allowed to breed at random with grazing cows. Bulls unsuitable for breeding are castrated. These are called steers and are used for draught power.
Out Breeding
This involves breeding among unrelated animals. To increase the milk yield, Indian cows are crossbred with European breeds like Jersey, Holstein, Red Dane, Brown Swiss etc.
Artificial Insemination
In this process semen is collected from a bull of desirable breed and stored at freezing temperature. This semen is injected into the vagina of cows during the period of heat of the animal, for fertilization. This method has many advantages.
- As many as 3000 cows can be fertilized by the semen collected from one bull
- Frozen semen can be stored for a long period and transported to remote parts of the country
- This methoa is economical
Goat
There are twenty different breeds of goat in India. Some of the well known breeds are Jamunapari, Himalayan, Bengal, Assam, Decanny, Osmanaabadi and Kathiyabari. Some of the exotic breeds are Alpine, Toggenberg and Sannen.
Sheep
Sheep are reared for wool, skin and meat. They are domesticated in Rajasthan, Kutch, Saurashtra, North Gujarat, Deccan Plateau, Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, hilly districts of Uttar Pradesh, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. The important breeds in our country are Nellore and Mandya. Crossbreeding of Indian sheep with exotic mutton breeds such as Dorset and Suffolk have been very successful and resulted in 30-50% increase in body weight.
Diseases of Goats and Sheep and Their Control
Some of the bacterial diseases are Black-quarter, Brucellosis and Vibriosis. Viral infections include sore mouth, goat pox and rinderpest. Additives to the feed prevent nutritional deficiencies. Dewormin periodically will control parasitic infections in the food tract. Regular vaccinations and periodic consultations with veterinarians will prevent many bacterial and viral diseases.
Breeding of Sheep and Goats
For breeding to start, the female should be 14-18 months and the male should be 2'1/2 yrs of age. For effective breeding it is import~nt to select ewes and ram or goats that are best suited for local conditions. Different breeds are known for the quality of wool and meat yield. Improvement in the quality of wool of Indian sheep is achieved through crossbreeding with exotic breeds of sheep such as Dorset Horn, Suffolk and Merino.
Pigs
Pigs provide high quality meat called pork. Pork is used to prepare ham, bacon, sausages and chops. The management of pigs is known as piggery.
Disease - Prevention and Control
Pig is the intermediate host for the intestinal parasite called tapeworm. The cyst of the worm embeds itself in the flesh of the animal. When man consumes pork that is infested, it can cause tapeworm infestation in him. Hygienic conditions while domesticating pigs and also regular vaccinations v;ill keep the animal healthy and will ensure healthy meat for our consumption
Poultry
Poultry includes all domestic birds - chicken, ducks, geese and turkey. They are reared for their meat and eggs. Poultry farming in India has made rapid strides as poultry management is being done on scientific lines. The three indigenous breeds of fowls are Arlee or Indian Game (provides good meat but is a poor egg layer). The most popular
varieties of this breed are Pella (golden red), Yakub (black and red), Nurie (white) and Kajal (black). The other Indian breeds are Karaknath and Busra. The exotic breeds are:
White Leghorn
This is a highly reputed breed, which produces long white eggs. The body size is small and consumes less feed.
Rhode Island Red
This breed has high yield of meat and is a good egg layer.
Shelter and Nutrition
Maximum yield of eggs is obtained by keeping the poultry in comfortable, well ventilated, dry, clean and properly lighted houses. Birds of different ages should be kept separately.
The first phase in the life of poultry is called the growing period and the chickens are called grower-soDuring this stage the chickens require enough space. Overcrowding supresses their growth. The feed given is restricted and calculated.
The second phase in the life of the poultry is called the laying period. This period is from the time of sexual maturity till the end' of egg laying period. The chickens are now called layers. The layers require enough space and proper lighting. These factors have a direct effect on the laying output of the hen. The feed given to the poultry consists of cereals and cereal by-products of corn, wheat, rice and millets like jowar, ragi and bajra. Oil cake or meal, protein concentrates, fishmeal or meat meal, minerals and greens are inclu~ed in the feed. The primary objective of feeding poultry is to convert low quality feeds into high quality food like meat and eggs. The birds act as small manufacturing factories to convert the raw materials into final finished products .
Disease and Control
Poultry fowls suffer from a number of diseases caused by virus, bacteria, fungi, parasites and nutritional deficiencies. Some of the diseases are fowl cholera, salmonellosis, fowl fox and parasitic infestations like roundworm, tapeworm and threadworm. Appropriate vaccinations and other preventive measures can prevent loss of poultry during an outbreak of disease.
Breeding
White Leghorn, Rhode Island Red, Plymouth rock, Barred Plymouth, Sussex and Minorcha are some of the exotic breeds utilized for the improvement of egg production and yield 9f meat in our country.
Fish Farming
This includes inland and marine fisheries, aquaculture and pisiculture. Fish is a source of high quality animal protein and a rich source of minerals like calcium, phosphorus and iron. India abounds in fish, both fresh water and marine.
Freshwater Fisheries
There are fish that are sustained in water bodies like ponds, tanks, lakes, rivers, back waters and marshy swamps. Inland or fresh water fisheries can be divided into:
Culture fishery - In culture fishery, the fish seed has to be sown, tended, nursed, reared and finally harvested when grown to table size.
Capture fish - Capture fishery does not involve sowing fish seeds. It involves capturing fish naturally available in fresh water bodies.
Marine Fisheries
These are fish that are sustained in salt-water bodies like seas and oceans. This requires machanisation. Fishing trawlers fitted with sophisticated electronic fish locating equipment are used for deep-sea fishing. Some marine fish are Bombay duck, Catfish, Mackerels, Red mullet, Sardine etc.
Aquaculture
This involves production of fishes, prawns, shrimps, lobsters, carbs and molluses.
Pisiculture
This is production of some food fishes like carps. The fish are cultured in ponds and tanks.
Disease and Control
The main causes for disease in fishes are viruses and bacteria. IPN (Infectious Pancreatic Necrosis) and VHS (Viral Haemorrhagic Septicaemia) are well known diseases. Pollution of water causes great harm to the fish population. Fertilizers, pesticides, effluents and chemical wastes form factories contribute largely to pollution of water bodies. In order to maintain the population of fish, regular monitoring of the oxygen level, carbon dioxide level and pH of the water is important.