Implementation of Community Based Breeding Program To Improve Growth Rate and Milk Production Performance of Abergelle Goat

The study aimed to identify farmers breeding objective and trait preference criteria, devising and implementing a pilot selective breeding scheme and establishing a model goat development scheme that can be applied under village conditions. A total of 1372 goats from 32 households were monitored for selection and data collection on growth performance, milk production, reproductive performance and other important characteristics. Best bucks were selected at yearly basis based on their indexed estimated breeding value and unselected bucks were culled from the population through castration and sale. Birth type, year of birth and parity had significant effect on pre-weaning growth performances. In this intervened pilot village with three round selections mean birth and yearling weight of kids had increased from 1.6±0.05 Kg and 15.4±0.4 Kg to 2.3±0.06 Kg and 16.8±0.45 Kg, respectively. Total lactation milk yield was significantly affected by birth season and year while lactation length was affected by parity of doe’s in addition to birth season and year. Average daily milk yield of doe’s was 422.3±120.3 ml and it was significantly differed between years. Higher body weight of the adult male (birth weight through yearling weight) with its color and strong feeding behavior were the most preferable traits, on the other hand milk production and good mothering ability were set for the doe’s. In general, the breeding program was feasible, simple and compatible strategy to the smallholder farmers breeding practices as it avoids negative selection by allowing elite selected bucks for next generation. Genetic improvement in a single pilot-village will not bring an overall population improvement of the breed, and hence there is a need of scaling out of the breeding program to all the neighboring communities. Reproductive technologies (estrus synchronization with timed artificial insemination) need to be used. Since larger number of nine month to yearling male goats are leaving the village in one or other reasons, selection of bucks starting from nine months of age should be emphasized in the future. All doe’s are not productive in terms of higher litter size and milk production at every stage of their reproductive age. So, keeping of very high parity dams will not provide profitable income to the households. Forage development strategies should be designed to improve data quality, increase production capacity of the breed and sustainability of the breeding program.