SUSTAINABILITY SUGGESTIONS FOR GOAT HUSBANDRY IN ISPARTA

Abstract

There are approximately 6.3 million head of goats in Turkey and 90.5 % of this population is the Hair goat. The regions in which goat husbandry is intensively practiced are Mediterranean, Aegean and Southeastern Anatolia. There are 168000 heads of goat in Isparta and nearly all of this population is the Hair goat. Ministry of Environment and Forestry is aiming to decrease the goat population to one million and since the ministry has taken some actions, goat producers grazing their goats near forests are under threat. This situation puts goat producers both sociologically and economically under undesired conditions. Isparta province is rich of shrubs that are consumed only by goats. Goats convert shrubs that do not need any resource input for maintenance into animal products and thus help to establish economical, ecological and sustainable animal agriculture in terms of energy use. Sustainability in animal agriculture is very important and is the driving force in animal agriculture. In this paper sustainability in terms of energy use, economics and ecology is considered. It is suggested goat producers breed their Hair goats with higher producing Saanen goats to compensate their loss due to decrease in their goat numbers, and establish organizations to sell their products at a higher price. However some Hair goats which are disease resistant, adapted to malnutrition and well adapted to Isparta conditions, should be kept as an indigenous gene source and be given a chance to pass their genes to the next generation. If some structural measures are not taken, then goat husbandry may lose its sustainability and be lost.