Abstract

The study was conducted in Mirab Abaya District of Gamo Zone Southern, Ethiopia in order to assess availability of major feed resources of goat, their nutritional composition and relation to agro-ecology and season. Cross sectional household survey, field measurements and laboratory analyses were employed to generate data. Multistage sampling was employed in order to draw household samples. A total of 194 respondents were interviewed for formal survey. Major feeds of small ruminants were collected, identified and subjected to laboratory analysis in order to determine Dry Matter (DM), ash, Crude Protein (CP), Neutral Detergent Fiber (NDF), Acid Detergent Fiber (ADF), Acid Detergent Lignin (ADL) and In Vitro DM Digestibility (IVDMD). The major feed resources in the study area were natural pasture, crop residues, fodder trees and agro industrial byproducts. The NDF content of the sampled feed from the study area was not more than 59.2%, which was recorded for natural pasture. The highest value of CP was recorded for Terminalia Browinii with 17.38%, followed by Strychones (15.39%) and Balanites Aegyptiaca (14.39%). Overall feeding systems in dry season were 48.12%free grazing, 5.17% tethering, and 44.09% herded grazing (P<0.05), whereas during wet season overall feeding systems were 28.92% free grazing, 8.5% tethering, and 59.25% herded grazing (P<0.05). Cumulative effort serious development action should be taken into account in order to overcome feed shortages in both quality and quantity by employing different approaches of feeds and feeding practices.

Keywords: Agro Ecology; Feed; Goat; Season