Background: Gujjar and Bakarwal tribal communities are a treasure trove of traditional veterinary knowledge as they have been using plants to keep their livestock healthy and free from diseases for centuries. However, this knowledge is declining day by day due to several factors. The present study was aimed at surveying and documenting the medicinal plants used traditionally by the tribal communities of Gujjar and Bakarwal in the Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), India to treat livestock ailments.Methods: A systematic ethnobotanical survey was conducted in 12 villages between July 2018-March 2020. Data was gathered from the local inhabitants using semi-structured questionnaires and analyzed quantitatively using use-value (UV), relative frequency of citation (RFC), informant consensus factor (ICF) and fidelity level (FL).Results: A total of 31 medicinal plant species belonging to 30 genera of 24 families, with herbs as the dominantly used plant habit (70.97%) were encountered. Roots were most frequently used for remedy preparation (35.14%) followed by leaves (32.43%), with oral administration as the main application mode. Use-value and Relative frequency of citation ranged from 0.03-0.72 and 0.03-0.48 respectively. Based on these values, Rumex nepalensis was found to be the most important ethnoveterinary species used. The reported Informant Consensus Factors were very high (0.81-1.00), indicating a very broadly spread knowledge about ethnoveterinary plants in the communities. The use category with the greatest number of plant species (10 spp.) was gynecological / andrological problems.

Background: Traditional veterinary phytotherapy refers to the use of plants for promoting health and curing diseases of livestock. Animal rearing is the major occupation of the tribal communities in Jammu and Kashmir and is thus an important part of their economy. Due to the inaccessibility of modern facilities and allopathic drugs, these communities mainly rely on the local flora to cure common ailments prevalent in livestock, developing a rich knowledge of ethnoveterinary practices. These practices are still prevalent despite the advent of modern allopathic drugs as they are easily accessible, effective, and economic. To date, a plethora of studies have been carried out on ethnoveterinary plants in different regions of India, however few of these are available in Jammu and Kashmir itself. The aim of this review was to collate and analyze the traditional phyto-remedies against livestock ailments in Jammu and Kashmir.Methods: An extensive review of the published literature was carried out using various online databases like Academia, Google Scholar, PubMed, Researchgate, Sci-Finder, Scopus, Science direct, and other allied published literature.Results: A total of 18 research articles from the year 1989-2021 were selected which were exclusively related to the ethnoveterinary importance of plants. It was found that Jammu province was explored more as compared to Kashmir, as 10 studies were exclusively done from Jammu province and major attention was given to the ailments of cattle, sheep, and goats. Conclusion:The present review indicates that the medicinal plants reported need detailed biochemical assays to ascertain their therapeutical profiles that can contribute to the discovery of novel compounds to the existing drug pool. The integration of the reported plants into the biodiversity registers and promotion of this traditional heritage by the concerned government institutions and stakeholders involved in conservation is the utmost need of the hour which will ultimately result in the conservation of both the traditional knowledge and biodiversity.

Background: Gujjar and Bakarwal tribal communities are a treasure trove of traditional veterinary knowledge as they have been using plants to keep their livestock healthy and free from diseases. However, this knowledge is getting diminished day by day due to several factors. The present study was aimed to survey and document the medicinal plants used traditionally by the tribal communities of Gujjar and Bakarwal in the Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), India to treat various livestock ailments.Methods: A systematic and extensive ethnobotanical survey was conducted in 12 villages of district Poonch between July 2018-March 2020. Data was gathered from the tribals using semi-structured questionnaires and analysed quantitatively using use-value(UV), relative frequency of citation (RFC), informant consensus factor (ICF) and fidelity level (FL).Results: A total of 31 medicinal plant species belonging to 24 families of 30 genera with herbs as the dominantly used plant species (70.97%). The most commonly used plant part in the herbal preparations was root (35.14%) and leaf (32.43%) with oral administration as the mode. Consensus methodology has been used as a statistical tool to identify the most potentially effective medicinal plant species. Use-value and Relative frequency of citation were reported to be in the range of 0.03-0.72 and 0.03-0.48 respectively. Based on values, Rumex nepalensis was found to be the most important and dominant species used by the tribes. The reported Informant consensus factor value was found to be very high (0.81-1.00) thereby establishing more authenticity of the study. Maximum number of plant species (10 spp.) were used to treat the gynaecological/ andrological problems.Conclusion: In the present study, novel ethnoveterinary use for seven plant species viz., Aconitum violaceum, Arisaema jacquemontii, Bistorta amplexicaulis, Clematis grata, Ranunculus bulbosus, Ulmus villosa and Viburnum grandiflorum were recorded. The reported information can be used to standardize active principles which can further lead to the development of more efficient veterinary medicines.