Breeding practices regarding the barn characteristics in the cattle enterprises in İspir district of Erzurum province of Turkey

Abstract

Aims: This study was carried out in order to determine the current situation and problems in the cattle breeding practices related to shelter characteristics in İspir district of Erzurum province and to provide solutions.Methods and Results: In this research, a face-to-face survey was conducted with 394 business owners selected by a random sampling method among cattle farms in İspir district of Erzurum province. Chi-square and frequency analyzes were performed in the statistical evaluation of the obtained data. It was determined that 97.2% of the surveyed enterprises did not have separate maternity wards in their barns. While the majority of the enterprises housed heifers, young cattle and dry cows together (90.4%), only 9.6% of them housed them separately. It was also determined that the percentages of enterprises providing bedding for cattle in the district were considerably low (12.4%). Grain straw (6.6%) and sawdust (3.3%) were the most popular bedding materials. The enterprises watered their animals through village fountains (90.1%), troughs (70.6%) or carrying the water by the bucket (33.5%). Of all the surveyed enterprises, 54.8% performed general cleaning once a year, while 33.0% twice and 12.2% three times. In 62.9% of the enterprises, manure was used as fertilizer in the fields, and a significant part of the enterprises preferred to utilize manure as fuel (34%). Most of the participants stated that they believed that the cattle would be uncomfortable and that their productivity would decrease at 10-15 °C, which is the optimal temperature for the cattle.Conclusions: The findings of the study demonstrated that there were some improper and deficient practices in the district in terms of breeding practices related to barn characteristics and a large educational campaign on this subject was required for cattle breeders.Significance and Impact of the Study: There are some structural and nonstructural elements in the barn that help the cattle to perform their natural behaviours indirectly increase productivity and ease the work in the enterprises. With this study, the status of cattle enterprises in İspir district in terms of breeding practices related to barn characteristics was determined and some suggestions were made regarding current problems.