What question did this study set out to answer?

This research aims to define farmer-driven breeding objectives to enhance the productivity and sustainability of indigenous goats.

Breeding objectives and trait prioritization in indigenous goat systems: insights from South African smallholders

View Full Paper

Ask AI

Bookmark

Authors

Randomized trial investigates trait preferences in indigenous goat systems, suggesting alignment with farmer priorities is essential.

This research aims to define farmer-driven breeding objectives to enhance the productivity and sustainability of indigenous goats.
Examined herd structures and management practices among 240 smallholder households keeping Xhosa goats.
Administered structured questionnaires and analyzed data using descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, and K-means cluster analysis.
Identified three typologies of goat keepers based on breeding practices and trait preferences.
Goat ownership was predominantly male-headed (68%), with average herd sizes of 21.4 goats.
farmers prioritized reproductive traits, with fertility ranked highest (Index = 0.241), followed by maternal ability and twinning ability.
Significant differences in reasons for keeping goats were found across agro-ecological zones (χ² = 18.42, p = 0.016).

Ntonga et al. (2026) studied this question.

View Full Paper

Ask AI

Bookmark