Management practices of dairy animals in Tarai region of Uttarakhand

Abstract

The existing dairy farm housing, milking, feeding and calf management practices in Tarai region of Uttarakhand along with performance traits were studied. Total 30 households with 596 livestock were considered for this work. Agriculture is the mainstay in the locale with animal husbandry as subsidiary occupation. Dairy animals mainly comprise 76% crossbreds and 21% Murrah buffaloes. Farms with 43% concrete, 30% bricks on edge and 10% kuchha flooring were recorded. Only 37% herds had 24 hour access to drinking water, 43% farmers fed commercial concentrate preparations, Stripping was practiced by 70% at the end of milking, 93% herdsman bred their cows within 12-18 hour of estrus with 3-5 months service period, and 60% dairymen consulted a veterinarian for services. Least squares mean (LSM) and standard error for Age at first calving (AFC), Calving Interval (CI), Dry Period (DP), Number of service per conception (NS/C), Milk yield per day (MY/D) and Lactation length (LL) were 427.31±5.80 days, 706.74±6.23 days, 378.76±1.48 days, 95.17±2.06 days, 1.32±0.03, 8.98±0.11 litre/day/animal, 315.14±1.65 days, respectively in cattle and 708.06±6.05 days, 948.62±10.09 days, 384.82±2.65 days, 139.08±6.07 days, 1.31±0.03, 9.54±0.15 litre/day/animal and 311.80±2.7 days, respectively in buffaloes. Effect of location on MY/D, LL and CI; of parity on CI and DP; and of AFC on DP was significant in cattle. In buffaloes, CI was significantly affected by location; MY/D, DP and LL by parity; and CI and NS/C by AFC. The results revealed a requisite to focus on stress management, calf care and sick animal management to improve animal performance.