STRUCTURAL AND TECHNICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE FACILITIES THAT BREED PUREBRED KIVIRCIK SHEEP IN KIRKLARELİ PROVINCE

Abstract

It was aimed to determine the current general structure of purebred Kıvırcık sheep enterprises, main issues of breeders, and their expectations from the authorities. A questionnaire was applied to farmers in 47 enterprises regarding sheep breeding and various measurements/observations were conducted in the sheepfolds. It has been determined that most of the breeders had a near-lifetime sheep breeding experience and many family members contribute to the breeding. The most commonly used roughage was dry pasture grass and straw, and factory feed and wheat were mostly preferred as concentrate feed. As a result of the study, the amount of area per mother sheep (0.704) and rootstock sheep + one lamb (1.260) was found to be insufficient. Most reported diseases were Bluetongue (45.65%), respiratory system diseases (30.43%) and enterotoxaemia (10.87%) for sheep, and diarrhea/digestive system (45.65%) and respiratory system diseases (36.96%) for lambs. While nearly half of the breeders stated that they were satisfied with sheep farming, the vast majority (81%) stated that they would continue to breed. Most important problems stated by the farmers were feed prices, low product prices, diseases/deaths, finding a shepherd, lack of organization. Most important expectations from authorities were stated as solutions for health issues, marketing problems, increasing product prices and financial support.