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Fore words
Are you thinking about raising your own goats right in your backyard, but do not know how to begin or are unsure what supplies and daily care they will need? Have you recently started a goat herd and everything seems to be going wrong? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then this post is for you! Granted, raising goats can seem overwhelming. They are stubborn, impulsive, and frustrating if you don't know what you're doing. But it does not have to be that way. In this, keeping Goats in Sub Saharan Africa post, you will discover an in-depth overview that gives you everything you need to know about raising goats. Therefore, lets explore together the practical tips that show you how to start a side business selling goat milk, cheese, and meat!
Body
Before starting to keep goats the first step you need to know is how much does a goat cost and which type of goat is right for starting. The total goat raising cost depends on the type of goat enterprise, the goat species, purchase price, shelter, food, vet care, supplements, etc.
Type of goat
There are different type of goats that can be kept in Sub-Saharan Africa. These include meat goats, dairy goats or breeding goats. There are different goat price ranges, depending on the breed. For example there are indigenous breeds and exotic breeds. It is far easier to begin with indigenous breeds because they are adapted and relatively cheaper. Examples of local breeds in SSA are Arusi-Bale, Shukria, somali, Southern Abyssinian, red goat, black goat, Mubende, Karamojong, Kigezi, Small East African, Sebei, etc (Tilahun, Haile and Seid, 2019; Banerjee, Animut and Ermias, 2000; Onzima et al., 2018). For exotic breeds, the common exotic breeds include the Boer goat, Saaneni goat, Toggengburg, Black Bengal, etc. the Boer is preferred for meat while the Saanei is liked for milk. Meat goats price is little higher than baby goat price. Therefore, the initial cost of the goats ranges from a few dollars to hundreds of dollars.
Fencing and shelter
One single goat needs a minimum grazing land of 23m2, and the area should be well fenced 0.4m high.
Goats hate wet and cold weather. Therefore, they require a substantial shelter that can protect them from rain and droughts. They quickly get cold, so a reliable roof and strong wall can help them stay warm and dry. However allow adequate ventilation to avert respiratory diseases. The goats are also susceptible to foot rots, so the floor needs to be self draining.
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The overall cost of shelter and fencing depend s on the material and space of land.
Food and Supplements
Goats are mainly browsers. But they also graze on grass. Because of shortage of water and forage, malnutrition is the major limiting factor for profitable production of small ruminants particularly during the dry season. Heavy mortalities of animals have been recorded during severe drought periods in Somalia, Ethiopia, and Sudan. Goats feeding costs depend on how much goats eat based on breed, age, pregnancy and breeding season, weather, etc. Usually, a goat consumes 2% to 4% of its body weight in hay per day. That means a 45kg bundle of hay should serve 45 days for a 50kg goat or 25 days for a pregnant goat.
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Goats need more hay throughout cold weather to keep warm, and pelleted goat food is the only option on those days. So in the winter season, the feeding cost increases. Moreover, if you don’t have suitable land for grazing, you may need to supplement their feed that their bodies require.
Veterinary Costs
Goats are sensitive to weather, so they need medical care anytime. It is always recommended to be prepared and have all the essential goat medical supplies on hand. Intermingling of animals in communal grazing land facilitates spread of infectious diseases such as peste des petits ruminants, contagious caprine pleuropneumonia, contagious ecthyma, goat and sheep-pox, footrot, trypanosomosis, helminthosis and ectoparasitic infestations. Unrestricted movement of animal herds in search food grazing, to avoid disease epidemics or tribal conflicts have resulted in spread of diseases beyond country borders. Outbreaks of diseases such as Nairobi sheep disease, bluetongue and Rift valley fever usually occur when naive animals are moved into endemic areas. The occurrence of diseases under the extensive system is also precipitated by stress factors such as long-distance trekking in search for feed and water, intense heat and sunlight, malnutrition and poor housing systems. For example, it has been reported that, in some parts of Nigeria, high incidences of endoparasites in goats are most prevalent in extensively managed small ruminants compared to the intensively managed ones. Also, a higher incidence of coccidiosis is encountered in goats kept on solid rather than on slatted floors. In Cameroon, higher incidence of accidents has been observed among the extensive compared with intensively managed small ruminants. The high mobility of people and their animals in search of scarce resources, particularly under the nomadic system makes it difficult to devise or institute small ruminant improvement programmes. (Yacob, Nesanet and Dinka, 2008; Birindwa et al., 2017; Nguna et al., 2019; Kusiluka and Kambarage, 1996)As well as you will also need the right livestock vet for regular checkups. So their prices for a checkup vary on location. Vet visits cost some money.
Always stay up to date and record the CDT dosage for goats on a goat vaccination schedule chart. For goat medication, you need to weigh your goats and record the right dosage for future treatment.
Other Maintenance
It’s essential to consider all maintenance expenses from the starting to keep track. That will help you to reduce expenses and earn more money in the long run. If you don’t plan to hire a worker to help you, that’s going to require some of your personal time as well. When recording your labour, you can cost per hour.
References
Banerjee, A., Animut, G. and Ermias, E. (2000) 'Selection and breeding strategies for increased productivity of goats in Ethiopia', The opportunities and challenges of enhancing goat production in east Africa, pp. 70-79.
Birindwa, B. A., George, G. C., Ntagereka, B. P., Christopher, O. and Lilly, B. C. (2017) 'Mixed infection of peste-des-petits ruminants and Capripox in goats in South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo', Journal of Advanced Veterinary and Animal Research, 4(4), pp. 348-355.
Kusiluka, L. and Kambarage, D. (1996) 'Diseases of small ruminants: a handbook', Common Diseases of sheep and goats in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Nguna, J., Dione, M., Apamaku, M., Majalija, S., Mugizi, D. R., Odoch, T., Kato, C. D., Tumwine, G., Kabaasa, J. D. and Curtis, K. (2019) 'Seroprevalence of brucellosis and risk factors associated with its seropositivity in cattle, goats and humans in Iganga District, Uganda', The Pan African Medical Journal, 33.
Onzima, R., Upadhyay, M., Mukiibi, R., Kanis, E., Groenen, M. and Crooijmans, R. (2018) 'Genome‐wide population structure and admixture analysis reveals weak differentiation among Ugandan goat breeds', Animal genetics, 49(1), pp. 59-70.
Tilahun, H., Haile, A. and Seid, A. (2019) 'Phenotypic Characterization of Indigenous Goats in North Shewa Zone, Amhara Region, Ethiopia', International Journal of Research Studies in Agricultural Sciences, 5(7), pp. 44-55.
Yacob, H., Nesanet, B. and Dinka, A. (2008) 'Part II: Prevalences of major skin diseases in cattle, sheep and goats at Adama Veterinary Clinic, Oromia regional state, Ethiopia', Revue de Medecine Veterinaire, 159(8/9), pp. 455-461.