Analysis of Backyard Chicken Farmers Socio-Economic and Management Practices in District Quetta, Balochistan

Abstract

Socio-economic profile of backyard poultry farmers beside the prevailing management practices and flock profile was studied in nine union councils of District Quetta Balochistan; from November, 2016 to March, 2017. Primary data was collected from 99 households randomly selected from study area by using semi-structured questionnaire, while descriptive statistics were used to conclude the data. Study revealed that women were the only prevailing gender (100%) involved in rearing of backyard chicken in the area. Maximum (53%) number of respondents were in the age group of > 40 years, while more than half (58%) of poultry keepers were illiterate. Backyard poultry farming was much popular (79%) in house wives, whereas 75% of them were responsible for primary support of their household. Pashtoon ethnicity was the major (40%) group of respondents. 58% of the respondents reported a family with 10–20 members. 90% of the farmers provided shelter to their birds, made from mud and thatch (kacha). 80% of these birds were fed on kitchen waste and bread remnants. Average flock size was 27 birds, having 48% Desi (Indigenous chicken), 27% Fayoumi, 12 % Rhode Island Red (RIR) and 13% cross bred birds. Flocks were comprised of adult hen (71%), cock (15%) and chicks (14%). Annual egg production was 4190±171 eggs with 217±2.4 eggs produced per bird, whereas the average number of eggs consumed per family was 1314±48 eggs. Backyard poultry rearing offers a real opportunity to alleviate poverty and gender empowerment. The farmers should be further trained to improve the current feeding and management practices of these birds.

Prevalence of tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, and hepatitis; in a prison of Balochistan: a cross-sectional survey

“…Women have no separate jails of their own, and they lodged in a section of men’s prison along with their children. Prisons in Balochistan are overcrowded than the actual number of facilities available for intimates, which is one of the key contributing factors to poor prison conditions health status [8, 21, 22]. Provision of health services in prisons are under the provincial department of health, includes the provision, management, and development of human resource and regulatory functions.…”

“…Globally in prisons, high prevalence, and wide transmission of HIV, Hepatitis-B Virus (HBV), Hepatitis-C Virus (HCV) and TB is witnessed than the general population. In addition to the challenges faced in a prison setting, there are opportunities for early detection and management of these highly infectious diseases [4, 10–12, 18, 21, 22]. In south Asia, prisons recognized as hubs of infectious diseases.…”

“…Statistics on the burden of HIV, HBV, HCV, and TB in prisons have not well documented, and therefore, information comes mainly from studies conducted in developed countries [20, 23]. Research studies in Pakistan have focused on disease detection, treatment, community linkages, health education, and prevention for prison inmates [3, 5, 20, 22, 24]. Limited shreds of evidence founded for research, survey or screening through active case finding and utilization of advance screening, and diagnostic tools with high sensitivity and specificity for the assessment of the prevalence of three major infectious diseases collectively.…”