S.S.T/P/7: RANCHING AND LIVESTOCK FARMING

Ranching and Livestock Farming

Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool.

The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animals who are raised for consumption, and sometimes used to refer solely to farmed ruminants, such as cattle, sheep, goats, and pigs. Horses are considered livestock in the United States.

The USDA classifies pork, veal, beef, and lamb (mutton) as livestock, and all livestock as red meat. Poultry and fish are not included in the category. The latter is likely due to the fact that fish products are not governed by the USDA, but by the FDA.

The breeding, maintenance, slaughter and general subjugation of livestock, called animal husbandry, is a part of modern agriculture and has been practiced in many cultures since humanity’s transition to farming from hunter-gatherer lifestyles.

Animal husbandry practices have varied widely across cultures and time periods. It continues to play a major economic and cultural role in numerous communities.

Livestock farming practices have largely shifted to intensive animal farming. Intensive animal farming increases the yield of the various commercial outputs, but also negatively impacts animal welfare, the environment, and public health.

In particular, beef, dairy and sheep are an outsized source of greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture.

What is ranching?

Ranching is the rearing of cattle mainly for beef production.

Write down the product from a ranch

• Beef
• Hides and skins
• Horns

In which way does a ranch contribute to the development of an area where it is located?

• Provides employment to people.
• Helps to develop infrastructure in the region.
• People yet beef from the farm
• They get skins from the farm.

How does a ranch benefit from people where it is located?

-A farm gets labour.

-A farm gets market.

What is livestock farming?

This is the rearing of animals for food and for other human uses.

Give the importance of livestock farming

–  Creates employment.

–  It is a source of income by selling the animals and products.

–  Source of raw material.

–  Source of food.

Mention three problems facing livestock farming

i) Animal diseases and parasites.

ii) Shortage of water and pasture.

iii) Climatic changes.

iv) Cattle rustling.

Mention any three ways of improving livestock farming in East Africa?

i) By crossbreeding the animals.

ii) Constructing valley dams to proved water to animals.

iii)  By feeding the animals well.

iv) By vaccinating animals to control diseases.

v) Planting drought resistant pasture for animal.

vi) By disarming the cattle rustlers.

Ranching and Livestock farming;

What is nomadic pastoralism?

This is the movement of cattle keepers from one place to another looking for water and pasture for their animals.

Give three reasons why people keep cattle?

–  To get milk and beef.

–  Source of income / for home use.

–  For bride price.

–   prestige.

–  For hides and skins.

–  Used in ploughing

Write five pastoral tribes in Africa

Hausa                     Fulani

Turkana                 Masai

Tuareg                   Bahima

Dodoth                   Boran

Pokot                     Rendille from Somali and Kenya

Somali

Mention the modern methods of keeping cattle

i) Zero grazing

ii)Paddocking

iii)Tethering

State the traditional methods of keeping cattle

Herding

Ranching and livestock farming:

Herding

Is the act of bringing individual animals together into a group (herd), maintaining the group, and moving the group from place to place

Give two disadvantages of herding as a method of keeping cattle

i) Animals destroy people’s crops.

ii) Animals can be stolen.

iii) Lead to spread of diseases.

iv) Leads to conflict among people.

Give advantage of keeping local breeds over exotic breeds

i) Local breeds are more resistant to diseases than exotic breeds.

ii) Local breeds are more resistance to harsh climate than exotic breeds.

iii) Local breeds produce better meat than exotic breeds.

Give the advantage of keeping exotic breeds over local breeds

i) Exotic breeds mature faster than local breeds.

ii) Exotic breeds produce more meat than local breeds.

iii) Exotic breeds produce more milk than local breeds.