A SURVEY OF SEASONAL LIVESTOCK POPULATION OF ZANGE GRAZING RESERVE IN GOMBE STATE

Abstract

The study was conducted to assess livestock population and herd structure of settlers in the Zange grazing reserve of Gombe state. Two hundred and two respondents were randomly selected and interviewed using structured questionnaire. The result shows that ruminants' livestock herd composition at Zange grazing reserve was dominated by cattle then followed by sheep and goats, respectively. In general, the herd structure was female dominated compared to male. The seasonal livestock population (Cattle, Sheep and Goats) from the months of July to December increased in July and reached its peak in September and then gradually declined. All species showed considerable similar trend. However, during the month of November and December goats had higher density compared to Sheep. The pastoralists prefer to sale small ruminant compared to dairy cows. Dairy cow are only sold when they become old. Males are raised either for breeding or sale for slaughtering. From the results obtained, it was concluded that the livestock population in the reserve increased from the months of July to September, and decreased in November to December. Goats had high density compared to sheep. It is recommended that the grazing reserve should be in stocked with a number of watering points and stoppage of encroachment onto grazing area by farmers.