Characterization of sheep rearing systems in the community of Cajobabo, Imías

Abstract

The work was carried out with 43 producers from the Cajobabo community, belonging to the Imías municipality, Guantánamo province, with the aim of characterizing sheep rearing systems. For this, a semi-structured questionnaire with 42 questions was designed, which addressed aspects of zootechnical and productive management, grouped in food, health, reproduction and genetics, in addition to general information. The information was complemented with direct observation of zootechnical aspects such as accommodation, grazing areas and health status of the animals. The questionnaire was only applied as long as the total number of sheep is equal to or greater than 5 animals per breeder (inclusion criteria). This was not applied in households that did not have sheep and that the total did not exceed 5 animals (exclusion criteria). The results showed that 72.1% of the producers dedicated to this breeding are men who are over 40 years of age (86%), where 62,8% do not pass secondary school. In the sampled farms, it was shown that the herds are made up of less than 15 animals (53,5%), of the Creole breed, with a predominance of rustic sheds, being gastrointestinal parasitism (67%) one of the diseases with the highest incidence in the herds visited. The main socioeconomic and technological factors that limit the increase in sheep production were identified: poor management of this species, a breed with low productive potential, little food availability, high incidence of diseases and insufficient training of producers and managers.