Ruminant Production

Training Institute For Technical Instruction(TITI)
Sanothimi- Bhaktapur, Nepal
EDLS207-LivestockProduction(Ruminant)
Krishna Aryal
Msc.Ag
Tribhuvan University
Nepal
05/26/2017 1Krishna Aryal

Course Outline
1. Introduction
( Animal Husbandary, Ruminants, Body conformation and identification, Importance of
ruminant Production, Present status of ruminant production in Nepal)
2. General Management Practices
(common vices in ruminant health, their prevention and care, factors affecting health,
general signs of illeness, general care and management)
3. Cattle Production
(Origin and distribution, breeds, care and management of calf, heifer, pregnant, milking
and dry animals, feeding and management of working bullocks and breeding bulls,
reproduction and breeding principles, housing system, health and hygiene)

Animal Husbandry = Animal + Husbandry
Animal - Organisms belonging to Kingdom Animalia, Non photosynthetic
methods of nutrition, non cellulosic cell membrane and centralized nervous
system
Husbandry- means ‘to look after’- management(includes proper feeding,
breeding, housing, health care and many other activities)
Thus, Animal Husbandry is defined as science as well as an art of
management including scientific feeding, breeding, housing, health care of
common domesticated animals aiming for maximum return.

Animal Kingdom Phylum Class Order Family Genus Species
Cattle
Animal
Chordata
(withBackbone)
Mamalia
(sucktheiryoungs)
Artiodactyla
(eventoedhoofed)
Bovidae
(4chambered
stomach,unbranched
horns,universalpresence
ofgallbladder
Bos indicus(humped)
taurus(humpless)
Buffalo Bubalus bubalis
Goat Capra hircus
Sheep Ovis aries
Swine Suidae Sus scorfa
Cat Carnivora Felidae Felis catus
Horse Perissoda
ctyla(
Non
ruminant
hoofed)
Equidae Eqauus cabalus

Beginning of Animal Husbandry
Old stone age( 1000-6000 B.C.) – Hunting age – no any attempt
to domesticate
New stone age( 6000- 8000 B.C.) – Started domestication of
animals
 Domestication came after food cultivation
 First animals to be domesticated – Dog and goat more than
10,000 years ago
( south western Asia in Lebanease and Palestinian mountains)

Ruminants(cattle, sheep and goats) were the first food animals to
be domesticated followed by pigs, possibly to dispose of table
scraps and waste products.
Horses and cattle were domesticated primarily for transportation
and draft work purposes.
Early people found animals that form large herds or flocks and eat
a wide variety of feeds are easier to domesticate.

Sheep: Domesticated 11,000-15,000 years ago
Domesticated in the mountains of Southeast Europe and
Central/Southwest Asia. These areas include the countries of:
Greece, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Hungary, Uzbekistan, Syria
Yugoslavia, Turkmenistan, Iraq, Romania, Tajikistan Bulgaria,
Afghanistan and Iran
Favorable because of their wool and meat for which they are still
used and bred today.
Because of selective breeding for traits and other results of
domestication, sheep are the only species of livestock that would be
unable to return to the wild.

Cattle: Domesticated 10,000-15,000 years ago
Domesticated near the boundary of Europe and Asia and/or
Southwest Asia
This area includes the countries of: Russia, Turkey, Ukraine,
Syria, Moldavia, Turkmenistan, Iran, Iraq
In the beginning, cattle were used mainly for meat, milk and labor
but eventually were replaced by horses in most of the draft work.

Horses: Domesticated approx. 5,000 years ago
Horses were domesticated in Eastern Europe and Western Asia.
This area includes the countries of Mongolia and Siberia.
Originally, horses were used for meat and milk, but eventually
became useful as pack and draft animals.

Pigs: Domesticated 5,000 -9,000 years ago
Pigs were first domesticated in the Middle East (Mesopotamia) in
countries such as Syria, Iraq and Turkey and then spread across
Asia, Europe and Africa.
Pigs were utilized more in settled farming communities than in
nomadic groups because they are difficult to move for long
distances.

Ruminant
• Derived from Latin word- Ruminare - means ‘ to chew over’
• A cud chewing, even toed, hoofed animal
(cud is a semi-solid and semi-degraded digesta usually in a
bolus form)
•Mammals that have evolved a highly specialized mode of
digestion that enables them to ingest/digest/utilize fibrous feeds
•Characterized by regurgitation of cud from reticulorumen.
• Stomach comprises of four compartments: Rumen, Reticulum,
Omasum and Abomasum05/26/2017 12Krishna Aryal

Some Common Ruminants
Cattle Buffalo
Goat Sheep05/26/2017 13Krishna Aryal

Some Common Non- Ruminants
Cat
Dog
Pig Horse

What’s the difference between ruminants and non ruminants?
 Anatomy of their stomach
Ruminants: four compartments( Rumen, Reticulum, Omasum
and Abomasum
Non- Ruminants: Simple stomach – Monogastric
(only Abomasum)

 Behavior
Ruminants: Cud chewing ( Regurgitation)
Non Ruminants: No regurgitation
 Physical Difference
Ruminants: Posses split/ cloven/ divided/ cleft hoove
Non Ruminants: Donot posses hoove. ( except- pig, horse)
Have claws

Importance of Ruminant production
 Food and nutrition security
source of protein through the consumption of milk, milk
products and meat.
Sources of manure
Farmyard manure is being prepared by the slurry from shed and
dung of animals.
The dung of animals is used to enrich the soil fertility.
Sources of draught power
In the hills and the mountains, yaks, donkey, mules, sheep and
goats are used to transport goods.
 In the Terai, bullocks and buffalo bulls pull carts and tilling the
field.05/26/2017 17Krishna Aryal

Sources of hide and skin
 Livestock hide and skin are valuable income source from
industries and forein currency.
Sources of wool and hair
Sheep wool and hair are used to make high value pashmina and
generate high income source of foreign currency.
Sources of cash:
 Milk and meat is considered as a cash product for farmer as it is
being sold morning and evening daily.
Live animals can be sold, small ruminants are considered as
liquid assets.

Sentiment/religious value:
Cow worshipped as god(Laxmi)
The Hindu's sacred Panchamrit is made by milk products is
required to perform religious work.
 Even every time before cooking, the kitchen is made sacred and
clean by cow-dung.
Biogas utilization
 Biogas is the alternate source of energy for cooking and
lightning the village.
 Dung is decomposed and changed in the form of methane
which is inflammable

Efficient utlization of agriculture by products
Crop residues, kitchen wastes can be better utilized as source of
feed to the ruminants for efficient conversion into milk and meat
products
Employment
Ruminant Production labour for completion of daily work.
Livestock has created the employment in each household.
Globalization
Ruminant production has important trade and marketing impact
at family, community, national and global levels.

Scope and opportunities of Ruminant Production
Agro-climatic variation
(terai- cattle, Hill- goats, Mountains- Sheep)
Varied fodder and forages can be cultivated
 High Demand
Greater demand of milk and meat products- Increasing population,
urbanization
Nutritional awareness among the citizens
Employment crisis
Ruminant production and associated enterprises can be the better
option to solve the unemployment problem.

Development of Infrastructure
Rural road, electrification, communication
Technological advancement
Breeding improvement, chilling vats for storage, machinery and
equipments for value addition
Government Prioritized sector
Subsidies to the farmers
Value chain and co-operative marketing

Constraints/ Challenges to Ruminant Production
Low access to improved breeds to the farmers
Low access to farm inputs( seeds, machinery)
High cost of inputs( seeds, medicine, machinery& equipments)
Insufficient storage plants(chilling vats)
Lack of technical know- how
Seasonal Market
Long process to get government services( subsidies)
Risky business
Ineffective insurance policy
Ineffective government policies

Digestion of Ruminants
(Digestive system consists of Mouth, Oesophagous, Stomach Compartments,
Small Intestine, Large Intestine)

Mouth:
Consists of lips, teeth, tongue
32 teeth
Dental Formulae Deciduous 0 0 3
3 1 3 = 10
Permanent 0 0 3 3
3 1 3 3 = 16
The front consists of 6 incisors and 2 canines
No incisors on top, but a dental pad
Six premolars and six molars on top and bottom jaws
Teeth used for grinding, tongue used to gather grass (pinched off
between incisors and dental pad)

Esophagus
Tube like structure
 Passes food materials from mouth to rumen of stomach
No spincher valve

Digestion in mouth and esophagus
Process of digestion starts from mouth.
Tongue and the lips help ruminant animals to pick and roll the
plant material into the mouth
Teeth helps in the mastication or chewing of the plant material.
The mouth has salivary gland that secret saliva with pH of about
8.2.
The esophagus is a tubular column through which food is
swallowed and regurgitated for re-chewing.
It has no sphincter valves and the muscles contracts in both
direction to allow movement of food.

Stomach compartments
Rumen ( Towel like)
•First compartment
•Located on left side of the animal
•Largest part of the stomach( makes up 80% of stomach)
•Within these reside bacteria( Lactobacillus, Streptococus) and
protozoa(Entodinium) that perform a large portion of the digestion
These organisms
digest the fibers, producing volatile fatty acids (acetic
acid, butyric acid, propaionic acid) which are absorbed
through the rumen
These acids account for 60% to 80% of the cow’s energy
Produce protein and vitamins B and C05/26/2017 28Krishna Aryal

Reticulum
Second compartment
Many folds( honey comb like)
Hardware stomach: trap and foreign material that animal may
pick up
Very thick therefore harder to damage
Makes up 5% of the stomach
Absorbs nutrients

Digestion in rumen and reticulum
Ruminants’ microbes employ anaerobic digestion, specifically,
fermentation
Fermentation is the break down of a substrate without the use of
oxygen
Fermentation Consists of the four steps illustrated below

Omasum
Third compartment
Many piles
Right side of animal- makes up 8% of stomach
Absorbs water and inorganic minerals

Abomasum
 Fourth compartment
True stomach/ true digestion
Right side of animal- makes up 8% of stomach
Engyme activity, break down feeds
Gastric juice containing hydrochloric acid,
pepsin, renin and lipase are produced.

Small Intestine
 Upper part of the intestine.
Digestion is complete and nutrients are absorbed
Long in length (150ft)
pancreatic juice and bile assist in the digestion
Process

Large Intestine
 Lower part of the intestine.
made up of the colon and caecum.
some of the food residue are deposited for further fermentation in
the caecum which has a blind end containing some microbes.
The absorption of water and other nutrients continues in the colon.
undigested food material forms a solid mass in the colon and it is
eventually expelled through the anus.

Associative digestive organs
Salivary glands
Located in pharynx(mouth part)
Secretes saliva, alkaline in nature
Maintain pH and thus sustain microbial activity
Pancareas
Sceretes panceratic juice, break down fats
Liver
Secretes bile, helps to digest fats.

Status of Ruminant Production in Nepal
 Agriculture contributes 33.1% GDP (MOAD- 2015)
Livestock contributes- 25.68% on AGDP
Livestock growth rate- 6.1%
5.8 heads of livestock and poultry per household in Nepal
Around 5 lakhs goats imported from India anually.
10-20% of livestock comercially managed

.
49.9365
51.33139
52.41873
51.78612 51.67737
48.5
49
49.5
50
50.5
51
51.5
52
52.5
53
2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15
Number(x100000)
Fiscal year
Trend of buffalo production
buffalo
(CBS, 2014/15)

72.2605
72.44944
72.94022
72.43916 72.41743
71.8
72
72.2
72.4
72.6
72.8
73
2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15
Number(x100000)
Fiscal year
Trend of cattle Production
cattle
(CBS, 2014/15)05/26/2017 38Krishna Aryal

.
80.507
80.7267
80.9536
78.9216 78.9292
77.5
78
78.5
79
79.5
80
80.5
81
81.5
2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15
number(x10000)
Fiscal year
Trend of sheep production
Sheep

91.8644
95.12958
97.86354
101.77531
102.51569
86
88
90
92
94
96
98
100
102
104
2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15
Number
x100000
fiscal year
Trend of Goat
Goat

4.47185 4.68913 4.92379
5.323 5.57669
11.09325
11.53838 11.88433 11.67773 11.67154
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15
Milkproduction(MT)
x100000
Fiscal year
Trend of milk production
cow
buffalo

(CBS, 2014/15)
167868 172414 175132 173906 174012
2722 2720 2721 2656 2658
52809 53956 55578 59053 60906
0
20000
40000
60000
80000
100000
120000
140000
160000
180000
200000
2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15
Meatproduction(MT)
Fiscal year
Trend of meat production
buffalo
mutton
goat

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