Goats and sheep are important sources of milk and meat. Both readily adapt to a wide range of climates and available feed supplies. They also have similar housing requirements and will therefore be treated together.

Management Systems

Depending primarily on the availability and use of land, three systems of production are practiced:

1. Subsistence, in which a few animals are tethered during the day and put into a protective shelter at night.
2. Extensive, in which the flock/herd grazes over large areas of marginal land unsuited to agriculture. The flock is usually shut into a yard at night. Both these systems are practiced extensively in East Africa.
3. Intensive, in which the animals are confined to yards and shelters and feed is brought to the flock. This system offers the greatest protection for the flock from both predators and parasites. Although it may make the best use of limited land resources, this system also increase labor and the capital investment required for facilities.

Housing

Housing in tropical and semi-tropical regions should be kept to a minimum except for the more intensive systems of production. In the arid tropics no protection other than natural shade is required. In humid climates a simple thatched shelter will provide shade and protection from excessive rain. Sheep and goats do not tolerate mud well; therefore yards and shelters should be built only on well drained ground.

Figure 10.54 shows a sheep/goat house for 100 animals. Unless predators are a serious problem, gum poles can be substituted for the brick walls. If thatching is difficult to obtain, a lower pitch roof of galvanized steel is feasible, but some insulation under the roof is desirable.

Where housing facilities are provided, it will be necessary to have in addition to water, feed troughs and permanent partitions, provision for temporary panels to help divide and handle the flock when necessary to carry on such operations as disease treatment, docking, shearing, milking and lambing.

In temperate climates and at high altitudes a more substantial structure may be needed. An open-front building facing north provides wind protection and a maximum of sunshine. A rammed earth floor with a slope of 1:50 toward the open front is recommended. A concrete apron sloped 1:25 and extending from 1.2m inside to 2.4m outside will help maintain clean conditions in the barn.

Table 10.18 Recommended Floor and Trough Space for Ruminants in intensive Production Related to Live Weight

Slats shall be 70 to 100mm wide, 25 to 30mm thick and laid with 25mm spaces. Individual lambing pens should be 1.5m depending on the weight of the ewe and number of lambs expected.

A feed trough should be 0.3 to 0.4m deep front to back and have a 0.5 to 0.6m high front wall facing the feed alley

In areas of high rainfall it may be desirable to keep the animals off the ground. Stilted houses with a slatted floor which is raised 1 to 1.5m above the ground to facilitate cleaning and the collection of dung and urine are shown in Figures 10.55 and 10.56.

Milking can be facilitated by providing a platform along the feeding fence where the animals can stand while being milked from behind. Such a platform should be 0.8m deep and elevated 0.35 to 0.5m above the floor where the milker stands.

Parasite Control

A dipping tank and crush are essential in the layout for a large flock or for a community facility for the use of many small holders. A typical dipping tank is shown in Figure 10.57. In areas where the ticks are a problem, simple walk-through tanks or foot baths may be needed. Figure 10.58 shows plans for a foot bath.

Source

Farm structures in tropical climates
FAO/SIDA COOPERATIVE PROGRAMME. RURAL STRUCTURES IN EAST AND SOUTH-EAST AFRICA
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS

Rome, 1988