Performing Department
Cooperative Extension Service
Non Technical Summary
Because consumer demand for lamb and goat meat is rising and there is an abundance of forages in the southeast, farmers in Alabama have a tremendous potential to diversify their farm products and bring about additional income. Goats and sheep can digest cellulosic substances and can convert plants to meat products. Pastureland, therefore, is critical to the production of these ruminants and the meat they provide. To obtain maximum profits from pasture grazing, producers must manage the land for high production per acre and must manage the animals to minimize forage waste and to ensure that they are growing sufficiently. One of the most widely used grazing systems is mixed-species grazing. This is a grazing system in which two or more species of domestic animals are grazed together or separately on the same grazing area in the same grazing season. Mixed-species grazing offers producers the opportunity for complementary pasture use since what one species will not eat, the other will. This significantly maximizes forage utilization, which translates into higher animal production rates per acre, lower costs of production, and better returns for farmers. Because of the complimentary grazing habits, the differential preferences and the wide variation in vegetation within most pastures, a series of field projects need to be conducted to demonstrate forage utilization and performance of meat goats and hair sheep grazing together. To build from ongoing efforts, the UANNP unit needs a Small Ruminant Outreach Center (SROC) to demonstrate the use of current research ideas and to provide experiential learning opportunities for target audiences. A SROC to carry out projects that will improve the education and assistance provided to sheep and goat producers in Alabama is essential to the UANNP unit for making research findings more visible and disseminating practical information about these livestock species and their impact on Alabama's economy and natural resources. By disseminating new, comprehensive and objective information about small ruminant production through innovative demonstration projects, the UANNP unit will help increase the number of Alabamians owning and operating profitable sheep and goat farms and associated businesses. Furthermore, these projects will enable the UANNP unit to help small and limited-resource farmers implement modern technologies and management strategies that will improve and sustain their efficiency of lamb and goat production. The following results and measurable outcomes are expected to have occurred by the end of this project: 1. The establishment of a SROC will have created new ways to educate sheep and goat producers. 2. Approximately 175 small ruminant producers will have improved production methods, production efficiency, animal productivity, product quality, and profitability. Post-activity surveys will have provided the data for assessing this outcome. 3. Approximately 60 small-scale producers and limited-resource farmers will have cut costs, added value to their sheep and goats, enhanced their quality of life and the quality of life for the community as a whole, and protected the environment.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
100%
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
The primary goals will be: 1. To provide research-based information and educational programs for sheep and goat producers, particularly small-scale producers and limited-resource farmers involved in local food systems. 2. To help sheep and goat producers, particularly small-scale producers and limited-resource farmers, adopt practices that are sustainable- economically, socially and environmentally. 3. To unify farmers and consumers in an attempt to develop local markets and expand community access to quality and healthy Alabama grown and processed lamb and goat meat products. The specific objectives will be: 1. To make research findings more visible and disseminate practical information about sheep and goats through on-site workshops, field days, and tours. 2. To demonstrate growth of stocker meat goats and hair sheep under mixed-species grazing. 3. To demonstrate forage utilization by stocker meat goats and hair sheep under mixed-species grazing. 4. To demonstrate integrated parasite control strategies used in stocker meat goats and hair sheep under mixed-species grazing. 5. To demonstrate the potential economic advantages of stocker meat goats and hair sheep production under mixed-species grazing. The expected outputs will be: 1. Undertake a series of field projects to demonstrate forage utilization and performance of meat goats and hair sheep grazing together to prove the technical viability together with the possible economic advantages. 2. Through demonstration projects, workshops, field days, tours, technical publications and websites, the UANNP unit will disseminate its information to government agencies, interest groups and individuals. The broadly-based and objective information will be include: a) Basic sheep and goat sciences. b) Parasite control methods that stress the use of FAMACHA, fecal egg counts, and other integrated parasite control strategies. c) Forage-based feeding system for grazing that meets the nutrient requirements of sheep and goats. Record-keeping of individual performance of animals to rank animals with superior genetics for the production potential of various sheep and goat breed types and crosses under low-input, forage-based production systems. d) Animal genetics, sheep and goat handling, feed purchasing, record-keeping, production of meat without residue of animal health products, and the HACCP system. e) The scheme for strengthening the marketing infrastructure for sheep and goat producers in Alabama.
Project Methods
Animal and Forage Management: The Kiko goat and the Katahdin and Dorper sheep will be used in these projects. Three grazing groups will be implemented: (1) control (Kiko goats grazing by themselves); (2) co-grazing (Kiko goats and Katahdin sheep grazing together); and (3) co-grazing (Kiko goats and Dorper sheep grazing together). A total of 60 Kiko wether kids (30/year), 10 Katahdin wether lambs, and 10 Dorper wether lambs will be used in these demonstration projects. Upon arrival, wether kids and lambs will be placed in a single paddock, vaccinated, dewormed, tagged, and weighed. Animals will also be fed an acclimatization diet for at least 21 days and observed daily for signs of morbidity. Kids and lambs outside of the desired weight range (about 25 kg) and those with visible health concerns will be eliminated from the project prior to assignment to pasture. The remaining animals will be grouped by breed and body weight and assigned to two paddocks (4 acres/paddock) containing three-sided pasture sheds measuring 400 square feet each. During the first year, a control grazing group (20 Kiko wether kids) and a co-grazing group (10 Kiko wether kids and 10 Katahdin wether lambs) will continuously graze an 8-acre plot of sericea lespedeza from June 15 to September 15, and an 8-acre plot of forage chicory from September 15 to November 15. During the second year, another control grazing group (20 Kiko wether kids) and another co-grazing group (10 Kiko wether kids and 10 Dorper wether lambs) will also continuously graze an 8-acre plot of sericea lespedeza from June 15 to September 15, and an 8-acre plot of forage chicory from September 15 to November 15. Forage growth and composition will be determined by use of cages placed in the field and subsamples clipped prior to and after each grazing. Initial, bi-weekly, and final weights of animals will be recorded, and average daily gains determined. Fecal and Blood Collection: Fecal samples will be collected for nematode egg count (FEC) from each animal immediately before the beginning of each grazing year. Blood samples (0.5 ml) will also be collected via jugular venipuncture in sodium-heparinized Vacutainer Tubes for packed cell volume (PCV) determination. All animals will then be treated for gastrointestinal parasites. During each demonstration project, fecal samples will be collected for FEC from 10% of the total number of animals at 15-day intervals. These animals will also be subjected to the FAMACHA test and withdrawal of 0.5 ml of blood samples for PCV determination. Parasite eggs will be counted using the McMaster technique. FAMACHA and PCV records will indicate prevalence of anemia caused by Haemonchus contortus infection. Based on the FEC and FAMACHA results, wether kids and lambs will be treated for internal parasitism as needed. The UANNP unit will make the final results available to policymakers, government agencies, interest groups and individuals through a series of workshops, symposia, conferences, print and web publications, and its website. Also, educational seminars regarding project outcomes will be presented to academic units.