Abstract:
The study was conducted in North Gondar Zone, Amhara region Ethiopia, to explore the various
indigenous knowledge systems practiced in livestock production by small holder farmers. Both qualitative
and quantitative data were collected from primary and secondary data sources. Qualitative data that helped
to assess indigenous knowledge practices in the study area were collected through personal observation,
and focus group discussions. In addition to this semi-structured questionnaires were distributed to 120
Households spread across the three districts of different PA administrative to collect relevant data. The
data collected through questioner was organized and analyzed by using SPSS (version 20). The study
revealed that a combination of crop residue and natural pasture is common sources of feed for most (45.8
%) of respondents. The indigenous knowledge regarding livestock production is considered as old as
domestication of various livestock species. With regard to feed treatment practices, most (51.7%) of the
farmers in the area treat the animal feed by using common salt in order to increase food palatability by the
animals. Ethno-veterinary medicines is one of the common practice by households in North Gondar Zone.
Even though most (65%) of households prefer modern disease treatment, about 78.3 % of farmers are
using cultural medicine for treating different livestock diseases The main reason for using cultural
medicine by farmers in the area is it’s easily availability, cheapest cost and its practical applicability. The
major constraint of indigenous knowledge utilization in north Gondar zone is the resistance Development
agents (28.3%) followed by other administrative bodies (22.5%) in the region. There is a high risk of
extinction of indigenous knowledge if it is not documented. To avoid this loss, emphasis should be given
on developing indigenous knowledge systems and documenting this unique knowledge into the
mainstream knowledge. In addition to this, research should be done on the various methods of ethnoveterinary
medicine
and
document
the
effective
ones
for
use
by
the
future
generations.
Moreover,
research
from
a gender perspective is needed to document specialized ethno-veterinary knowledge not only of
cattle but also of small stock such as sheep and chickens. It is important that livestock farmers share ideas
on traditional knowledge with modern veterinarians in order to optimize productive capacity of herds and
enhance sustainable rural livelihoods.
