AVAILABILITY OF FEED RESOURCES FOR GOATS IN PASTORAL AND AGRO-PASTORAL DISTRICTS OF SOUTH OMO ZONE, ETHIOPIA

A survey was conducted in Hamer and Bena-Tsemay pastoral and agro-pastoral districts of South Omo zone, south western Ethiopia in between January to May 2011 with the objective to describe availability of feed resource for goats. Data were collected from the two districts by informal and formal survey methods using focused group discussion and semi-structured questionnaire administered to 250 households. Natural pastures from rangelands are major feed sources for goats. Higher feed availability is reported in March to April (during the main rainy season). However, availability of feed extends up to October in Bena-Tsemay district due to the higher rainfall in the district. In both districts, the hot dry season (November to February) is the period of feed scarcity and during which high mortality of goats have been reported. Crop residues and some food left over are also available for supplementing animals especially in the agro-pastoral areas. The efficiency of goat production in the studied districts could be increased by optimizing goats breeding season with the availability of feed resources.