Selection for increased efficiency in small ruminants
This paper deals with the role of selection in increasing the efficiency of production from small ruminants. Increasing the efficiency of output from the animals, as discussed, will fail unless attention is also paid to problems of marketing and distribution of the product. In developing countries also there may be no encouragement for owners of small flocks and herds to increase production of wool, meat or milk because they will receive no benefit without a revision of the ways in which their product is presented for sale, marketed and distributed. Further, it may not be possible to implement production improvements without access to credit. Genetic improvement is a simple, relatively cheap and permanent way of increasing animal production, but disease control and better nutrition also make major contributions. Improvement relating to the animal is only part of a whole system. In this paper, increased production per head is taken as the criterion of increased efficiency for selection of individuals within a flock or for choosing between cross-breeding and selection, while the need for considering other factors is discussed in relation to choosing species, breed or strain
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Texto biblioteca |
| Language: | eng |
| Published: |
Roma (Italia) FAO
1986
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