Dairy husbandry: the contribution of different species to the earnings of small farmers

Abstract

Dairy husbandry has excellent potential for ensuring food security for small farmers in India. However, this sector has been facing various challenges, such as a poor genetic base, a scarcity of feed resources and inadequate health care services. Genetic breeding to produce a higher milk yield plays a very significant role in increasing the profitability of dairy animals. Indian farmers presently have options to maintain different types of milking animals, such as nondescript cows with a very low milk yield of 1–2 kg milk per day, cows of recognized indigenous breeds, with the average daily milk yield ranging between 2 and 6 kg/day, crossbred cows with 6–8 kg/day, or buffaloes of nondescript or recognized breeds, with an average milk yield of 3–6 kg/day. Although the average milk yield is a reliable parameter for the selection of dairy animals, farmers are either compelled by their ability to invest in high-milking animals or influenced by the information available to these types of animals about their ability to adapt to local climatic conditions, their ability to tolerate heat stress and diseases, and the quality of milk before making their choice. However, in the absence of valid facts, many farmers end up making the wrong choice of animals and fail to optimize their income. This paper reviews the merits of different types of milking animals to enable them to make the proper choice.