African Journal of Agriculture, Technology and Environment 2012 Vol. 1(1): 47-53 December 2012ISSN: 2315-8042

Full Length Research Paper

Flock size, productivity and management of backyard chicken reared by women in Yenagoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa State

*Ajayi, F.O. and Agaviezor, B.O.Department of Animal Science and Fisheries, University of Port Harcourt

P.M.B.5323, Choba, Port Harcourt*folasade_ajayi@yahoo.com

Received: 15 September 2012 Accepted:10 October, 2012

ABSTRACTThe production performance of Nigerian indigenous chicken reared by women in selected communities in Yenagoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa State was investigated using structured questionnaire and personal interview with 150 female farmers. Average flock size was 30.76 ±1.42 birds per household for all the communities, 34.67% of the farmers do not have formal education, 97.3% of the farmers kept indigenous (normal and frizzle feathered) chicken alone whereas 2.7% had exotic and crossbred birds. These women utilise the traditional production system where birds scavenge for food during the day and may be given sorghum, broken grains, maize bran or other waste products at only a minimal cash expenditure on feed. Type of birds, housing type and health coverage /vaccination programme showed no significant difference (p>0.05) in flock size, total egg production, eggs per bird and mortality rate in flocks. Birds in proper houses had significant (p<0.05) total egg production and eggs per bird (2,319.67 and 13.66 respectively) while those without houses had the least (862.22 and 9.06 respectively). About 67% of the farmers provided only night shelter, 23.33% do not provide any house whereas only 10% provided adequate housing facilities for the birds. Also, most of the farmers (64%) do not carry out any routine drug administration and vaccination programme, 24% administer drugs at the onset of disease and only 12% practised regular vaccination programme. It was concluded that adequate intervention through provision of financial aids, good management practices and good health care services will improve the production performance and development of rural poultry production. The improvement of rural poultry production had continuously proved to be an effective tool for fighting poverty, providing food security and improving rural livelihood.

Keywords: indigenous chicken, rural livelihood, production performance, traditional systems

INTRODUCTIONThe native chicken is primarily kept for egg and meat production on a subsistence basis in most villages in Nigeria. They constitute about 80% of the 120 million poultry birds in Nigeria and have thus, contributed significantly to the protein intake of the people (Sonaiya, 1992; Rims, 1992; Afrol News, 2006). The flocks are normally small in size but are important assets providing their owners with meat

and eggs that can be consumed by the family and to some extent providing additional income through the sales of eggs and birds that may also be used to fulfil other social obligations (FAO, 2000). They are also used in traditional caring rituals, means of knowing the time, offered as gifts and in cementing marriages and friendship. In communities where food shortages are uncommon, chickens are kept to supplement the meals or to honour

a guest (Nwagu, 2002). Women have been reported to be the predominant owners of rural poultry (Gueye, 2000; Okitoi, et al., 2007). In a number of African countries, women have also been reported to play key roles in rural poultry production through ownership, management and decision-making (Nwanta, et al., 2006;  Maphosa et al., 2004;  Okitoi, et al., 2007; Adeniyi and Oguntunji, 2011). Access to village chickens for women encourages involvement of women in rural development, particularly where technology transfer includes the participation of end users (Ayoade, Ibrahim and Ibrahim, 2009). Horst (1988) reported that most women in the rural areas utilise the traditional system of production where birds scavenge around the house during the day and may be given sorghum, broken grains, maize bran or other waste products as supplements resulting in less expenditure on feed. This traditional production system requires low inputs which makes it conformable to the socio–economic conditions of the rural families. Moreover, in the context of the Niger Delta area, indigenous chicken production and management is easier than the exotic broiler and pullet production. This is because indigenous chicken are hardy, can withstand stress and cope with unfavourable weather conditions that predominate the coastal areas than the exotic breeds. Also, the household poultry farmers in coastal regions of the Niger Delta prefer to rear local chicks due to low cost of day-old chicks than the broiler chicks (Kperegbeyi, Meye and Ogboi, 2009).

Poultry has the quickest rate of turnover when compared with other livestock. Local chicken production are considered as an initiative enterprise owing to its low cost and such production systems are run by rural households who apply their indigenous knowledge of breeding, feeding and health practices (Abdelqader, Wollny and Gauly, 2007). Housing may be provided and where this is done, local materials are usually used for construction

(Atunbi and Sonaiya, 1994). Efforts are therefore needed from all stakeholders for active participation in rural poultry, geared towards strengthening and improving the development of rural poultry production which has over the years proved to be an effective tool for fighting poverty, ensuring food security, improving rural livelihood and contributing significantly to ecologically sound management of natural resources. This study sought to characterize the production performance of backyard chicken reared by rural women in Yenagoa area of Bayelsa State, Nigeria and to highlight appropriate interventions for strengthening production in the area.

MATERIALS AND METHODThe study was conducted in ten selected villages in Yenagoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, Nigeria. The villages include Igbogene, Nedugo, Ogbolomo, Polakou, Gbaratoru, Agbura, Zarama, Okordia, Ogbogoro and Famgbe. Yenagoa lies between latitude 4°55′29″N and longitude 6°15′51″E of the equator. The LGA has a land area of 706 km² and a population of 266,008 at the 2006 census (Wikipedia, 2012).

The study was conducted with the aid of structured questionnaires. Verbal interviews were also used to collect information and thereafter recorded in the questionnaire since most of the farmers do not have formal education. One hundred and fifty female farmers were selected at random from 10 randomly selected nearby villages around Yenagoa (15 females per village). Information collected were on age of farmer, educational qualification, age of poultry business, flock size, type of birds, number of egg produced, consumed and used for hatching, mortality in chicks, pullets and layers, housing facilities and health coverage and vaccination programmes.

Data collected were analysed using a General Linear Model (GLM) procedure of SAS (1999) and for comparison of the number of farmers following activities such as housing type, type of birds and

health coverage/ vaccination programme, Duncan’s Multiple range test was used. The following statistical model was constructed:

Yijkl=µ+Ai+Bj+Ck+Eijkl Where Yijkl=the observed parameter in chickens of ‘ith’ bird, ‘jth’ housing type under ‘kth’ health coverage produced programme.µ=Population constant common to all observations.Ai=the effect of ‘ith’ type of birdsBj= the effect of jth housing facilities Ck=the effect of ‘kth’ health coverage programme

Eijkl =the residual term associated which is assumed to be normally and independently distributed with mean Ѳ and variance.

RESULTS Table 1 represents the demographic characteristics of female poultry farmers in the study area. About 80% of the respondents are women in their middle age (31-50years old). The household size per family is usually more than six persons (50.67%). About 35% of the respondents had no formal education whereas only 5.33% attained educationally to tertiary institution.

Table 1: Demographic characteristics of female poultry farmersCharacteristics Frequency Percentages (%)

Age distribution (years)< 30 20 13.3331 - 40 64 42.6741 - 50 56 37.33> 50 10 6.67

Household size2 - 4 persons 23 15.335 - 6 persons 51 34.00> 6 persons 76 50.67

Educational qualificationNo formal education 52 34.67Primary 49 32.67Secondary 41 27.33Tertiary 8 5.33

Age of Poultry business5 - 10 years 51 34.0011-15 years 47 31.30>15years 52 34.70

Table 2 shows the results of analysis of data collected for flock statistics, egg production and uses, hatching performance and mortality rate per flock. The average flock size was 30 birds per household. Average cock: hen ratio per flock was 1: 4 in the study area. About 85% of total egg productions are used for hatching while

15.49% are for home consumption. Yearly egg production per bird was 110.99±1.44 with coefficient of variation of 13.91. Mortality rate was significantly (p <0.05) high in chicks, followed by pullet whereas hen and cocks had similar values

.

Table 2: Mean flock size, productivity and egg utilization pattern from backyard chicken reared by women in Bayelsa State

Production indices Mean ± SE CVFlock statistics

Flock size 30.76 ±1.42 56.44

Chicks 24.21± 1.48 75.21Pullets 11.77±0.79 81.98Hen 6.02±0.44 90.36Cocks 4.79±0.39 99.58Egg production and uses (number)Total annual egg production/flock

1527.24±95.46 76.69

Eggs produced /bird/year 110.99±1.44 13.91Total egg consumption 236.65±3.14 23.56Total eggs for hatching 1287.24±35.6 18.91Hatching performanceHatchability % 68.25±1.26 22.52Frequency of egg set/year 3.69±0.12 37.94Number of egg set/ hen 8.36±0.19 27.99Mortality (%) Chicks 38.68±0.96 a 51.45Pullets 15.21±0.25 b 25.41Hens 6.76±0.34 c 14.89Cocks 5.68±0.12 c 17.69Overall 21.34±0.87 48.12abc, Means within column carrying different superscripts differ significantly (P<0.05). CV = Coefficient of Variation.

Table 3 presents the results of the survey on the types of birds reared, the housing type, and the health management system practised. Type of birds reared showed no significant difference (p > 0.05) on flock size, total egg production eggs per bird and mortality rate whereas housing type significantly (p<0.05) affected total egg production, number of eggs laid per bird, and percentage mortality in a flock. Health coverage and vaccination programme only showed significant effect (p < 0.05) on the total number of eggs produced and egg production per bird

while flock size and mortality rate was not affected.

Housing type significantly (p<0.05) affected total egg production, number of eggs laid per bird, and percentage mortality in a flock (Table 3). The traditional system of management in which birds are only housed in the night was practiced by majority of the farmers in this study (Table 4). Highest percentage of households provides only night shelter for birds (66.67%) while only 10% had proper houses for birds. Healthy management and vaccination was not practised by majority of the households (64.0%), whereas

Table 3: Production performance of backyard chicken reared by women in Bayelsa State, NigeriaParameters Flock

size (N)Total egg production(N)

Eggs/bird(N) Mortality (%)

Type of birdNormal feather(nana) 42.80 1697.50 11.47 23.92Frizzle feather(F) 20.80 1411.16 9.00 21.19Exotic/crossbred 29.71 1751.8 13.93 17.80Housing typeProper houses 33.41 a 2319.67 a 13.66a 16.07 b

Night shelter only 31.86 a 1491.13 b 10.67 b 19.78 b

No house 22.9 b 862.22 c 9.06 b 28.06 a

Health/vaccination programmeRegular 31.39 2244.31 a 20.50 a 21.89At disease onset 33.94 1235.94 b 11.17 b 18.56None 29.46 1312.95 b 10.13 b 22.28a,b, Means within column carrying different letter differ significantly (p<0.05)

some just administer drugs at the onset of diseases (24.0%) while the remaining 12.0% carried out routine drug administration and vaccination programme.

Table 4: Management practices of indigenous backyard chicken reared by women

Proportion of farmersProduction factor

Frequency Percentage

Housing typeProper houses 15 10.0Night shelter only 100 66.67No house 35 23.33Health/vaccination programmeRegular 18 12.0At disease onset 36 24.0None 96 64.0

DISCUSSIONBackyard poultry production plays a key role in the livelihood of rural dwellers as it provides the population with cheap and readily harvested meat and eggs, which constitute a vital source of protein for immediate home consumption. The high flock size observed contradicts earlier reports of 5 to 20 birds per household by

Gueye (2000) and 22 birds and 17.5 birds per household, respectively, for the agro-pastoralist and montane ecological zones of Uganda (Illango et al., 2000).

Flock size and composition variation in rural areas has been attributed to the different farming systems practised and the effect of local factors such as diseases and predators (Kuit, Traore and Wilson., 1986; Abdelqader, Wollny and Gauly., 2007). The higher flock size reported in this study could be attributed to public awareness on women empowerment that led to an increase in number of women involved in backyard chicken production and the increased demand for poultry products. Flock composition revealed higher number of pullet and hen than cocks. Apart from cocks meant for reproduction, cocks are used to entertain guests and for consumption. Hatchability percentage of 68.25 % was not consistent with earlier reports of 83.36% and 62.09% for normal and frizzle feathered indigenous chicken respectively (Ajayi and Agaviezor, 2011). The frizzle feathered chicken may have contributed to the reduced hatchability recorded in this study. The eggs are also hatched naturally by hens that are predisposed to uncertain weather conditions.

The normal feathered indigenous chicken was the most numerous breed, followed by the exotic breeds- Harco black and Shaver Brown- while the frizzle feathered strain was the least. This finding is similar to earlier reports that indigenous Desi and Fayumi breeds have higher flock sizes than the exotic White Leghorn (WLH) and Rhode Island Red (RIR) in Pakistan (Farooq and Mian, 2001; Farooq et al., 2002). The reason for flock size variation in type of birds could be attributed to the adaptive features possessed by the indigenous that made them withstood stress, diseases and other harsh environmental conditions more than the exotic breeds.

The highest mortality percentage for birds with no provision for housing corroborates the findings of Farooq et al. (2002) where birds with proper houses and those with night shelter only had less mortality. The high mortality rate reported by chicks may be attributed to the fact that they are more susceptible to infection at this stage and also most of the farmers do not vaccinate their birds. Birds not properly housed are exposed to predators, harsh weather conditions and other disease causing agents.

The Nigerian indigenous chickens are still, largely, genetically understudied and therefore serve as rich reservoirs for germplasm or gene bank which could be useful for future breeding programmes. There is need to characterized them according to the various ecotypes in order to exploit their genetic potentials for a meaningful genetic improvement. It is obvious therefore, that women played significant role in rural poultry production especially in alleviating poverty and supply of protein in human diets in the study area. It is recommended that adequate intervention from government and other stakeholders should be geared towards strengthening the productivity of their livestock enterprise.

REFERENCESAbdelqader, A. Wollny C.B.A. and Gauly,

M., 2007. Characterization of local chicken production systems and their potential under different levels of management practice in Jordan. Trop Anim. Health Prod. 39(3): pp.155-164.

Adeniyi, O. R. and Oguntunji, A. O., 2011. A socio-economic survey of cultural practices and management of village poultry production in Ondo area, Nigeria. Livestock Research Rural Development. 23 (12), 2011.

Afrol News., 2006. Nigeria considers vaccinating birds.[online] Available at www.afrol.com/articles/18227. [Accesses October 7, 2012.]

Ajayi, F.O. and Agaviezor, B.O., 2011. Hatchability performance of Pure and Crossbred Indigenous Chicken Strains in the High Rainforest Zone of Nigeria. Proceeding of the Genetic Society of Nigeria. 10th – 14th

October, 2011, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

Atunbi, O.A. and Sonaiya, E.B., 1994. An assessment of backyard poultry housing in Osogbo, Osun State, Nigeria, African Network for Rural Development Newsletter 4, p.7

Ayoade J A, Ibrahim, H. I. and Ibrahim, H. Y., 2009. Analysis of women involvement in livestock production in Lafia area of Nasarawa state, Nigeria. Livestock Research Rural Development. 21 (220). [online] Available at http://www.lrrd.org/lrrd21/12/ayoa21220.htm [Accessed September 7, 2010.]

FAO., 2000. FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations). 2000. FAOSTAT database. FAO, Rome, Italy.

Farooq, M. Gul, N. Chand, N. Durrani, F. R. Khurshid, A. Ahmed, J. Asghar, A. and Zahir-ud-Din., 2002. Production performance of backyard chicken under the care of women in Charsadda, Pakistan. Livestock

Research for Rural Development 14(1): pp.27-34.[online] Available at http://www.cipav.org.co/lrrd/lrrd14/1/faro141.htm

Farooq, M. and Mian, M. A., 2001. Contribution of backyard chicken to household economy produced by non member and member farmers of Women in Development (WID) under Sarhad Rural Support Program (SRSP) in Charsadda, Pakistan (A case study). J. Rural Develop. Admin., 33(3), pp.89-97.

Gueye, E. F., 2000. Women and family poultry in rural Africa. Development in Practice, 10(1), pp.98-101.

Horst, P., 1988. Native fowl as reservoir for genomes and major gene’s with direct and indirect effects on production adaptability. Proceeding 18th World Poultry Congress, Sept. 4-9, Nagoya, Japan. pp.105-115.

Illango J., Etoori, A., Olupot, H. and Mabonga, J., 2000. Rural poultry production in two agro-ecological zones of Uganda. Livestock Health Research Institute (LIRI), Tororo, Uganda, pp.1-20.

Kperegbeyi, J. I., Meye, J. A. and Ogboi, E., 2009. Local chicken production: strategy of household poultry development in coastal regions of Niger Delta, Nigeria. African Journal of General Agriculture 5(1),

Kuit, H.G., Traore, A. and Wilson, R.T., 1986. Livestock production in Central Mali: Ownership, management and productivity of poultry in traditional sector, Trop. Anim. Hlth Prod.18, pp.222-231.

Maphosa  T. K. Kusina  N. T. Makusa  S. M.  and Sibanda S.,  2002. Effects of housing on chick mortality in the Nharira-Lanchashire smallholder area, Zimbabwe. In: Proceedings of

7th WPSA Asian Pacific Federation Conference and 12th Australian Poultry and Feed Convention. Gold Coast, Queensland, /Australia. pp.506-509.

Nwagu, B.I., 2002. Production and management of indigenous poultry species. A training manual in national training workshop on poultry production in Nigerian National Animal Production Research Institute, Shika, Zaria. pp.10-26

Nwanta,  J. A., Umoh , J.U., Abdu, P. A. Ajogi, I. and Ali-Balogun, J. K., 2006.  Management of losses and Newcastle disease in rural poultry in Kaduna State, Nigeria. Nigerian Journal of Animal Production 33(2): pp.274-285.

Okitoi, L. O., Ondwasy, H. O. Obali, M. P. and Murekefu, F., 2007. Gender issues in poultry production in rural households of Western Kenya. Livestock Research for Rural Development 19 (2).

Rim, B., 1992. Nigeria livestock resources. Volume II: National Synthesis Annex Resource Inventory Management Limited. p.472.

SAS., 1999. Statistical analysis system user’s guide. SAS/STAT version 8th edition, SAS Institute, Inc. Cary, NC, USA.

Sonaiya E. B., 1992. Rural Poultry in Africa. In: Proceedings of an International conference on rural poultry production. Thelia House, OAU , Ile-Ife.

Wikipedia, 2012. The Free Encyclopaedia [online] Available at Yenagoa Community Portal [Accessed October 7, 2012.]