Pastoral livestock breeding strategies for resilience and sustainable development

Abstract

Pastoralists are involved in extensive communal systems of livestock farming. Pastoralism not only yields meat, milk, and hides but also provides social, economic, and environmental advantages. In India, 20 million individuals partake in pastoralism, with 73 out of the 202 registered livestock breeds being raised and looked after by pastoralists. In pastoral livestock system, breeding management includes sorting livestock and identifying potentially productive animals through practical record-keeping methods. Pastoral communities rely heavily on indigenous knowledge, remembering the performance of individual animals and their ancestors by memorizing events and activities sequentially. Animals are given collective names based on their maternal lineage and unique names based on their coat color and horn patterns. Traditionally, breeding in pastoralism prioritized meeting local needs and emphasizing traits such as strength, maternal instincts, social behavior, loyalty, endurance, and cultural significance over maximizing meat and milk production. Males were chosen based on ancestry and performance, with a focus on adaptability features, while females were selected based on milk production and adaptability traits. Breeding methods in pastoralism aim to enhance livestock genetic diversity, adaptability, and resilience through selective breeding, line breeding, and inbreeding. Pastoralists relied on their indigenous knowledge to maintain mental records of the animals. To improve pastoralists' livelihoods, it is crucial to enhance access to veterinary services, offer training programs, improve market access, provide healthcare and financial resources, ensure access to rangelands and watering stations, involve pastoral communities in wildlife conservation, include pastoralist representatives in policy-making, and promote the preservation and advancement of indigenous knowledge.