Sheep Rearing
Sheep can be reared as free range (where there is no shortage of land)
or under housing inside a shed. It is a very important component in dry
land farming system. It is profitable venture for small, marginal
farmers and landless labours with very low investments.
Introduction
Sheep with its multi-facet utility for wool, meat, milk, skin and
manure, form an important component of rural economy particularly in the
arid, semi-arid and mountainous areas of the country. It provides a
dependable source of income to the shepherds through sale of wool and
animals.
The Advantages of Sheep Rearing:
-
Sheep do not need expensive buildings to house them and on the other
hand, require less labour than other kinds of livestock. The
foundation stock is relatively cheap and the flock can be multiplied
rapidly.
-
Sheep are economical converter of grass into meat and wool. Average
meat recovery of 22-30 kg/sheep.
-
Sheep will eat varied kinds of plants compared to other kind of
livestock. This makes them excellent weed destroyer. The structure of
their lips helps them to clean grains lost at harvest time and thus,
convert waste feed into profitable products.
- Unlike goats, sheep hardly damage any tree.
-
The production of wool, meat and manure provides three different
sources of income to the shepherd.
-
Mutton is one kind of meat towards, which there is no prejudice by any
community in India and further development of superior breeds for
mutton production will have a great scope in the developing economy of
India.
- Well adopted to environment and poor management practices.
-
The meat rate is increasing day by day and hence, the demand is
increasing accordingly.
- Average of 1-2 kids per sheep per lambing.
- Penning leads to manurial value to land.
