Smart farms

: 03 November 2022; Hits: 1013

Timely transition of goat kids to pasture key in avoiding stunted growth, poor health

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Transitioning sheep’s and goat’s young from a milk diet to exclusive pasture-based feeding many a time is done after 90 days.

However, strict adherence to this timeline is most likely to cause stunted growth and degeneration of health given that the immunity system of the young ones is yet to stabilise.

Patrick Nyauma, an animal health officer says weight is the best indicator of a lamb or kid being ready for weaning. Twins, triplets or quadruplets are likely to be of less weight by the lapse of three months.

Body defense

Their bodies may not be up to the task of defending themselves against parasites, diseases, and harsh weather among other factors. Setting in of stress after rushed weaning would negatively impact growth and ultimately earn farmers dismal profits.

Nyauma says the best time to wean kids of goats and lambs of sheep is when they have attained thrice their birth weight.

For instance, a goat kid weighing 3.5kg at birth should be weaned after attaining at least 10kg. Similarly, a lamb of four kilos at birth should be weaned after reaching 12 kilos.

“This is a good weight for the young ones. It will vibrantly grow because it is strong. Its body is ready for the harsh world without the support of the mother’s milk nutrients,” he said.

Attaining steady growth

The veterinarian says the general health of the young ones must be taken into account too. If they look weak, weaning can be delayed even if they have tripled their weight.

“They should be feeding on grass, hay, grains, and drinking water on their own prior to weaning. They must show independence in feeding. Including protein supplements would quickly stabilise health and ensure steady growth,” he says.

Infections, parasites

De-warming, tattooing, tagging, castrating-for males, and other practices should be done ahead of weaning to avoid stress when they are no longer under the care of their mother.

They are highly susceptible to diseases. Wet seasons are peak moments for parasite attack if the animals are feeding on fresh pastures. Feeding them on grains and hay becomes a better option.

While keeping the parents far away from the young ones, the officer says it is important to let the kids in a familiar setting to avoid psychological trauma and scare.

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: 02 November 2022; Hits: 1101

Simple guide to setting up a backyard vertical garden

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A Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) report shows that the urban population is now at 50 per cent and is expected reach 65 per cent of the world population by 2025. With this growth, comes the challenge of food security with the World Food Programme indicating that 65 per cent of the world is at risk of starvation.

But as food scarcity bites and farming land shrinks, urban dwellers are adopting innovative farming techniques to grow food for subsistence use.
Garden-in-a-sack, also known as vertical gardening, is one of the commonly-used techniques by urban farmers because it produces high yields from a small space. And while mature vertical gardens look appealing to the eye, setting up one is a structured process.

The following section outlines the process involved in creating a garden-in-a-sack, which you can easily follow to populate your balcony or backyard with vegetables.

1. Start by erecting your empty sack using wooden splinters for support.
2. Pour soil, mixed with manure at the base, so that it sits up to 10 inches from the ground.
3. Get an empty tin and cut off the bottom. You will use this as a funnel to position tiny stones, which will be used as the irrigation gateway. Position the tin at the center of the base soil and fill it up with small stones.
4. With the stone-filled tin in place, pour more manure-mixed soil on its side so that it surrounds the tin.
5. Pull out the tin and position it at the top of the pile.

6. Add more stones, fill the sides with soil and repeat the process until the sack is full.
7. When the sack is completely filled, carefully poke holes on its sides at regular intervals and insert the seedlings of your preferred crop: kales, spinach, spring onions, and coriander are some of the crops that do well in these gardens.

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: 01 November 2022; Hits: 1433

How to control deadly foot and mouth disease

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Hundreds of thousands of livestock are at risk of contracting a dangerous and highly contagious, foot and mouth disease, which sporadically emerges across parts of the country.

In spite of the viral diseases having less than 5 per cent mortality rate in adult cattle, it highly affects milk and meat production which are the main products from livestock.

Although the disease, which has been reported in Transmara Sub-county, mostly affects cattle it also attacks goats and sheep. The county has more than 1.8 million cattle, goats and sheep.

Affected animals show reduced milk production, massive weight loss, mouth and feet blisters, froth from the mouth, and quivering lips, among others symptoms.

Quarantine

John Mugambi, an animal health researcher at the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation says massive losses can be averted in three main ways.

“The immediate action farmers must take once upon suspicion is reporting to the authorities for a quarantine to be affected. But farmers can also restrict movement of their herds to common drinking and grazing areas because the infection is highly contagious,” he said.

Vaccination

The researcher says vaccination is the most effective control method because it cannot be cured. Vaccination costs less than Sh150 and can be accessed by animal health service providers.

“More than one viruses cause this disease and each has its own vaccine. But a multivalent vaccine is the most effective because it does not call for scrutiny of the type of virus to be targeted,” Mr. Mugambi said.

Salt on dry grass

Another preventive measure is the application of Magadi soda at the entry point into and out of cow sheds and homesteads-for free-range farmers. The salt, which is found in most agrovets, sterilises the feet of the animals and the visitors. It should be spread on dry grass.

Danger

Fears of further spread are rife in this county, which is dominantly home to pastoralist community, the Maasai. According the county government statistics, there are 727,480 cattle, 995,241 sheep and 729,722 goats.

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