Hi arivnd
Initially before you start a dairy check for technical and financial feasibility.
Technical Feasibility - this would briefly include -
1. Nearness of the selected area to veterinary, breeding and milk collection centre and the financing bank's branch.
2. Availability of good quality animals in nearby livestock market.
3. Availability of training facilities.
4. Availability of good grazing ground/lands.
5. Green/dry fodder, concentrate feed, medicines etc.
6. Availability of veterinary aid/breeding centres and milk marketing facilities near the scheme area.
The package of practice goes like this
I. Housing:
1. Construct shed on dry, properly raised ground.
2. Avoid water-logging, marshy and heavy rainfall areas.
3. The walls of the sheds should be 1.5 to 2 meters high.
4. The walls should be plastered to make them damp proof.
5. The roof should be 3-4 metres high.
6. The cattle shed should be well ventilated.
7. The floor should be pucca/hard, even non-slippery impervious, well sloped (3 cm per metre) and properly drained to
remain dry and clean.
8. Provide 0.25 metre broad, pucca drain at the rear of the standing space.
9. A standing space of 2 x 1.05 metre for each animal is needed.
10. The manger space should be 1.05 metre with front height of 0.5 metre and depth of 0.25 metre.
11. The corners in mangers, troughs, drains and walls should be rounded for easy cleaning.
12. Provide 5-10 sq. metre loaf space for each animal.
13. Provide proper shade and cool drinking water in summer.
14. In winter keep animals indoor during night and rain.
15. Provide individual bedding daily.
16. Maintain sanitary condition around shed.
17. Control external parasites (ticks, flies etc.) by spraying the pens, sheds with Malathion or Copper sulphate solution.
18. Drain urine into collection pits and then to the field through irrigation channels.
19. Dispose of dung and urine properly. A gobar gas plant will be an ideal way. Where gobar gas plant is not constructed,
convert the dung alongwith bedding material and other farm wastes into compost.
20. Give adequate space for the animals. (The housing space requirement of crossbred cattle in various
categories/age-groups is given in Annexure-VII).
II. Selection of Animal :
1. Immediately after release of the loan purchase the stock from a reliable breeder or from nearest livestock market.
2. Select healthy, high yielding animals with the help of bank's technical officer, veterinary/animal husbandry officer of State
government/ Zilla Parishad, etc.
3. Purchase freshly calved animals in their second/third lactation.
4. Before purchasing, ascertain actual milk yield by milking the animal three times consecutively.
5. Identify the newly purchased animal by giving suitable identification mark (ear tagging or tattooing).
6. Vaccinate the newly purchased animal against disease.
7. Keep the newly purchased animal under observation for a period of about two weeks and then mix with the general
herd.
8. Purchase a minimum economical unit of two milch animals.
9. Purchase the second animal/second batch after 5-6 months from the purchase of first animal.
10. As buffaloes are seasonal calvers purchase them during July to February.
11. As far as possible purchase the second animal when the first animal is in its late stage of lactation and is about to
become dry, thereby maintaining continuity in milk production vis-a-vis income. This will ensure availability of adequate
funds for maintaining the dry animals.
12. Follow judicious culling and replacement of animals in a herd.
13. Cull the old animals after 6-7 lactations.
The buffalo breeds suitable for UP are BHadawari and MUrrah. The indegenous cattle breed is Sahiwal and exotic breeds are HF and Jersey.
Regards
Ashwini S
