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Enter the Goat...
 Goats
have helped people survive and thrive for countless generations. The
Goat is thought to have been the first animal to be domesticated for
economic purposes. Evidence suggests that domestication took place
about 7,000 BC in South West Asia, on the borders of present-day Iran
and Iraq, where agriculture was already advanced. From there goats
spread into all the tropical zones and most temperate areas. Today
there is hardly a climatic zone without goats.
Immediately after domestication, physical differentiation into breeds
began. Early physical changes affected the ears, horns, colour and
hair type.
 There
are estimated to be over 500 million goats in the world with the vast
majority being found in developing countries of Asia, Africa and South
America. Goats are a source of meat, milk, skins, hair and many other
products. Wherever there's a sheep a goat will always be there to
give wise counsel. Otherwise a sheep would do all sorts of unreasonable
things. Interestingly enough the goat has also adjusted to the modern
technologies of the twenty-first century quite fast - it can for instance
be able to cross the road that our dear sheep would not have a clue
about.
Next time you experience an alarming decline in your flock of sheep
as a result of traffic accidents, just recruit some few goats into
the flock and you'll be amazed at the results!
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The sacred mountain of the Samburu
people of Kenya In most African
traditional religions, mountains are often among the sacred sites
for special religious rites. This is certainly true for the Samburu,
a nomadic pastoralist community in northern Kenya. The Samburu believe
that their god resides on top of Mount Nyiro and the mountain is his
seat. Most of their sacrifices are offered at a designated area on
top of Mount Nyiro.
Mount Nyiro is one of the few
areas with indigenous forest remaining in Samburu District. Although
it is now a gazetted forest area under government protection by the
Forestry Department, this mountain has been protected, for centuries,
by the Samburu people because of its religious significance to them.
In addition to the religious significance of Mount Nyiro to the Samburu
people, this mountain has also been protected for other reasons. As
a source of springs, this mountain and its surroundings form one of
the dry season grazing areas. The mountain is also a fort for the
Samburu and their livestock during raids from the neigbouring tribes.
Apart from the socio-cultural and religious values of Mount Nyiro,
this relatively small ecosystem has a high biodiversity value that
is of special significance to pastoralist communities. Information
so far obtained from an ongoing ethnoveterinary research and development
project in Samburu by Intermediate Technology Development Group (ITDG)
Kenya has shown that Mount Nyiro is an important source of plant material
used for ethnoveterinary purposes. Through validation, conservation
and propagation of these plants, the project is expected to enhance
the conservation of the environmental resources of Mount Nyiro. This
paper demonstrates that the religious beliefs of the Samburu have
been instrumental in the protection of the fragile ecosystem of Mount
Nyiro and its valuable plant resources. See more related
pages on EVK.
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| Traditional veterinary treatments
of the Turkana of Kenya The
main traditional medicine against diseases is branding. The chest
is branded against pneumonia; the abdomen and the pedestal area against
trypanosomiasis; the parotid lymph node against camel pox and other
localised swelling. To rid the young calf of tick infestation (by
nymphs) mud is applied in thick layers to suffocate the ticks and
facilitate their removal. Sometimes the hairs are cut in body areas
where the ticks (nymphs) are commonly known to infest (chest and shoulder).
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Castration techniques
There are two methods used:
Castration is mainly
done on animals 4 -5 years old. It is not done for pack animals,
since Turkana do not use camels for loading, but just for having
fatter and more manageable animals. See more related
pages on EVK.
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The value of livestock
Nearly 2 billion people - a third of the world's population -
derive some livelihood from farm animals. Of these, over a third (12%
of the world's population) depend almost entirely on livestock for
their livelihoods. Domestic animals meet more than 30% of people's
food and agricultural needs and their demand are ever increasing. |
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