Dairy cows should be managed to encourage them to eat many meals a day. A dairy cow should be given 1520 kg of chopped forage per day, preferably in. All you need to know about feeding your cow for maximum. The 4 major common dairy cattle breeds in kenya, milk. If you have been following the market trends in kenya and reading inspirational stories like that of douglas kanja of eden farm and nancy karanja of sanla farm, you know that dairy farming is the business to go into if you want a rather less rough way into the millionaire club. Just how much money does dairy farmers make in kenya. The primary aim of feeding your dairy kenya cows should be the maximization of the milk yield along with maintaining a good health of the cow. Large and mediumscale farms rear approximately 24% of the holstein friesian dairy cows in the country and produce most of milk sold in main urban centers ojango and pollot 2001, wakhungu 2001. Moreover, small scale dairy farming in kenya has offered employment opportunities to more than eight hundred thousand individuals in the country thereby upgrading. The most common cattle feeding systems are i pure grazing system where cattle. Dairy cow handlers rehearse for a parade at pokea dairy farm, njoro, ahead of the annual stock breeders show at jamhuri park, nairobi. Farmers perceptions of dairy cattle breeds, breeding and feeding. Ngong dairy farmer who gets 90 litres of milk daily from. Feeding dairy cows profitably is an issue of paramount importance to all dairy farmers.
Dairy cattle production nutrition feeding contain 70. Mr ndungus dairy cows are frequent participators in. Numbers of dairy cooperative societies and membership 2000 to 2006 3 2. Eldoret dairy farmers association edfa has imported 23 heifers from south africa in a bid to improve the quality of dairy cows and boost milk production, it said. Thinking globally, producing locally about our farm about us about imani dairy farm combining over 15 years of hard work and shared family knowledge this is a smallscale family farm that was started in 2007 in karatina, nyeri county, kenya and is managed by maina muthuma, and his wife, angi yodermaina. Dairy cow behavior and impact on dairy cattle nutrition management 2. Their milk, however, has the lowest butterfat content of 2. On our first cow, we took far too long and another buyer snapped her out from under us. A case of the meru and tharakanithi dairy and animal healthcare communitybased breeding programme. Sources of different nutrients and 10 their functions 4.
What are the nutritional requirements for all types of dairy cows. She started out with two dairy cows but now has five. The kenya livestock breeders organization through dairy recording service of kenya drsk at the national level. When feeding your cow, give a mix of half of dry feeds and half of fresh fodder. Your cows health will determine their productivity. The small land sizes required for their rearing are especially useful in these highly populated areas. I still believe you dont have to own land to venture into dairy. Very few dairy farmers can boast of getting 90 litres of milk per day from five cows. The methods used in a study of health and productivity of dairy cattle in smallholder dairy farms in kiambu district, kenya are described.
Dairy cows kenya githunguri central kenya, nairobi, kenya, 00200 rated 4. Chapter 28 feeding maize silage to kenyan dairy cattle. Practical considerations in feeding dairy cows written by maurice rangoma. How to start dairy farming in kenya and make it a multi. In addition you can meet experts and sample different feeds on sale in kenya. Add value of the live animals and their off springs. The study sampling frame included all smallholder dairy farmers registered by one of the 14 dairy societies in kiambu district. Livestock markets are quite different things happen quite quickly. Milk yield prediction in kenyan holsteinfriesian cattle. Friesian and ayrshire dairy cows, incalf heifers and calves for sale. Top farm where heifers fetch sh600,000 daily nation. Feeding for maximum milk production and reproductive. Kmdp works across the kenyan dairy sector, with smallholders, medium and large scale.
Dairy industry in kenya 1st dairy cattle introduced to kenya in 1908 from south africa 1935 ai started in kenya on commercial basis and animal husbandry research station 1946 central ai station established 19661992 highly subsidized a. Roughages alone cannot provide all the required nutrients, especially in early lactation. Transformingthekenyandairy feedssystemtoimprovefarmer. In a twostage stratified random sample 90 smallholder dairy farms were selected. Increase value of bull calves and female calves from pedigree cows. Analysis of factors influencing the adoption of dairy. Smallholder dairy cattle feeding technologies and practices in. This paper documents their use in central kenya and the efforts of a. East africa dairy development project, nairobi, kenya. In contrast to current trends of increasingly large and specialized dairy production units in most industrialized countries, about 80% or 2. The target 10 nutrition program encourages farmers to maximise their pasture consumption, and then to address feed gaps as efficiently and effectively as possible by using supplements. Most cows produce well bellow their potential because their nutrient intake is insufficient in both quantity and kind. Dairy farming in kenya is a flourishing sector with more than a million small scale dairy farmers rearing over 3. They provide a quick source of milk for consumption or sale, which has an immense value especially to poor households.
I have 5 dairy cows 4 friesians and 1 ayreshire, 2 heifers that have been served and three young calves about 10 months old. Manuals on fodder and feeding dairy cows agriprofocus. Rumination and the fermentation which takes place in the rumen allows dairy cows ruminants to turn low. I reside near nyahururu town laikipia district, kenya, east africa. When new milk is present in the udders, the cows are susceptible to new infections. In dairy production, feeding is one of the very important management practices to consider. Cows will reduce dmi when environmental temperature exceeds 24c, usually due to reduced forage intake. Apart from providing milk for consumption, hence improving the nutritional status of the. They are outstanding milk producers and if kept under good management, they can be milked up to three times a day. Population of milk animals and percentage contributions to annual milk production 2007. Kenyan farmers import cows from south africa to increase. Although much research has been done on problems faced by dairy. Using both crosssectional 2010 and panel data 20002010 collected from small scale farms in selected districts in kenya. Kenya has over one million small scale dairy farmers keeping over 70% of the 3.
These dairy cows are large and they usually exhibit the typical pied coat pattern black and white. Pdf feeding dairy cattle in east africa title researchgate. In new york state, a dairy farm can feed milk back to its own animals. If udders become hard and swollen, they should be milked out. Constraints affecting dairy goats milk production in kenya. Dairy cow ownership and child nutritional status in kenya. Currently, the level of milk production is about 5 billion litres against an estimated consumption of 7. Feeding diets and strategy should aim at steadily increasing milk production and sustaining peak production for as long as possible. Therefore, high costs of feeding dairy cows during these dry seasons. Dairy farming in kenya where to buy graded dairy cows in. Manual on improved feeding of dairy cattle by smallholder farmers 5 contents 1. Smallholder dairy farms sdfs in kenya constitute an average herd. Kenya has one of the largest dairy industries in subsaharan africa. Dairy cows for sale kenya and beyond has 10,744 members.
Using household data from coastal and highland kenya, three econometric model formulations are estimated. Decreasing water intake by 40% results in a 16 to 24% decline in dmi and a large decrease in milk yield. How to feed a dairy cow for more milk daily nation. There are several cows for sale and you can search for cows based on county, production, age, and breed. Sustainable genetic improvement of goat meat and milk. Feeding for maximum milk production and reproductive performance1 barney harris, jr. All you need to know about feeding your cow for maximum productivity friday august 7 2015 sarah mwangi feeds her dairy cows on march, 2014 on her farm in ngong, nairobi. Platform for dairy farmers to buy and sell their cows. Monitor cows until their udders do not produce milk. Dairy cows for sale kenya and beyond public group facebook. High energy feed forage to meet the requirement of. The dairy industry accounts for 4% of the countrys gdp. When cows space their feed consumption out over the day, they may spend more time lying down ruminating and the rumen microbes or bugs are more productive. Studies at michigan state suggested that cows ate ten or more times a day when feed was in front of them at all times.
In this study only holsteinfriesian cattle data were used because they comprise a high proportion of the exotic dairy animals raised in kenya. Background kenya dairy subsector most developed subsector in agricultural sector 3. Keep rations constant, especially during the first half of the lactation after calving, milk production steadily rises up to a peak level. Matt akins and liz binversie with the university of wisconsin prepared an article that we are sharing but are also providing the following key points in addition. In kenya, the population of dairy goats is about 200,000 and 80% of these are reared in mount kenya region. Dairy cow feeding management in kenya farmlink kenya. East africa dairy development says that kenyan dairy farm yields are substantially lower than the international standards. Feeding the dairy cow by siobhan kavanagh introduction a dairy cow must eat a balanced diet with enough energy, protein, fibre, water, minerals and vitamins to cover her own maintenance and growth as well as milk production and the needs of a growing foetus. Technology farm in nakurunjoro, where dairy cows live on. Therefore, it is important to maintain clean pens and pastures. Complete guide on zero grazing housing designs in kenya. This feed table is a collective work of researchers from burundi, kenya, rwanda, tanzania. Yes, it is a less rough way because the market is so big yet largely unsatisfied.
With high feed price, there is a tendency to cut back on the amount of concentrate feeds. The objective of feeding dairy cows should be to attain a high level of milk production. By so doing the farmers may save on the feed cost and may lose more by milk production lost as cows respond by producing less milk. This document is ds44, one of a series of the animal science department, florida cooperative extension service, institute of food and agricultural sciences, university of florida.
Kenyas dairy industry is dynamic and plays an important economic and nutrition role in the lives of many people ranging from farmers to milk hawkers, processors, and consumers. In easy language, the feeding requirements for dairy cows are explained. Joseph owuor is among the most celebrated farmers in kenya only leased a half acre plot in njoro and keeps more than 500 heads of cattle. Kenya is the largest milk producing country in south saharan africa, with a herd size larger than the rest of east and southern africa. Effects of calliandra and sesbania on daily milk production in dairy. Productivity trends and performance of dairy farming in kenya. Transforming the kenyan dairy feeds system to improve farmer. Reported sales of seeds and seedlings from only onethird of the katresno seed dealers would support an. When an advert appeared on the daily nation in october 2011 for dairy cows selling at not less than 140,000 shillings, no one could have imagined that the one behind this dairy farming success story of eden farm, limuru, was a 26yearold it graduate. Elgon kenya vet gives insights into how farmers can feed their dairy cows for maximum milk production.
Milk safety related legislatyion and standards 36 7. The east african dairy development project in kenya, through use of various. John vanleeuwen and shauna richards maize silage has several advantages in feeding dairy cows. This is technology farm, where cows live on the fast lane, eating the finest feeds in life and getting the best treatment. Okeyo2 1farmafrica dairy goat and animal healthcare project, p o box 2980, meru, kenya. Description of smallholder dairy farms in kiambu district. The importance of dairy farming in kenya kenya has over one million small scale dairy farmers keeping over 70% of the 3. Pdf smallholder dairy farmers in developing countries face many feed.
Dairy cows for sale pure breed friesian and ayrshire. This study examined the kenya dairy sector through a synopsis of the trends in milk productivity over time, and the performance of the dairy enterprises at the farm level. Heres all you need to know about feeding dairy cows. This study examines the hypothesis that dairy cow ownership improves child nutritional status. Cows are thirsty and hungry immediately after milking. Chapter 28 feeding maize silage to kenyan dairy cattle written by mr. Sustainable genetic improvement of goat meat and milk production in kenya. Increased social capital, networks, and communication.