Smallholder cattle dairy under semi-arid conditions: opportunities and challenges

Dairy has gained prominence among pastoralists and agro-pastoralists in the Kenyan rangelands albeit with many challenges. A study was conducted to characterize smallholder cattle dairy in semi-arid Mbeere District, Eastern Kenya. Farmer practices and animal productivity of stall managed lactating cows were analyzed. Exotic cattle were reared and fed roughage and concentrates at 16.5 - 20.2 kg and 2- 3.3 kg, respectively, in processed/ unprocessed form. Forages were mostly conserved in open or under roofed hay barns but some conserved the harvested grasses, cereal and legume crop by-products in baled bundles. Silaging was not used to preserve forages. During drought, banana stems and cereal byproducts were used to sustain animals. Feedstuffs were of moderate feed values exposing farmers to challenges in feeding lactating cows. The study recommends improvements in farmer’s capacity on alternative forage conservation and utilization methods, silaging and baling, among others, in order to increase milk yields.