Goat husbandry practices in Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh

A study was conducted to survey goat husbandry practices and constraints faced by the goat keepers in the Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh. Atotal of 300 goat keepers from three blocks each of Mahoba and Banda districts were selected. The majority of the goats are maintained under extensive system in both districts. The average herd size was 17.27 and significantly (P<0.01) higher in Mahoba (19.53±0.99) than Banda (14.99±0.75). The body weights of kids at 12 months of age were significantly higher in Banda (20.94±0.87 kg) than Mahoba (16.80±0.49 kg) district. Daily milk yield of goats was significantly (P<0.01) higher in Banda (626.52±26.64 g) than Mahoba (458.62±12.09 g). The majority of goat keepers (97.67%) penned their goats in Kachcha houses and the average density was 2.40 animals/m². Shortage of feed, veterinary care services, housing and market were ranked as the first, second, third and fourth constraints faced by goat keepers. The study concluded that need based interventions may be introduced in the Bundelkhand region to improve goat productivity.