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Scrub rangelands support livestock grazing and provide ecosystem services to their inhabitants. The present study was conducted in Chakwal, an important tract of the Pothwar Plateau, which sustains herds of small domestic and nomadic ruminants. Urbanization and uncontrolled grazing practices have reduced rangeland productivity and increased soil erosion and resulted in poor land conditions. This study assessed the influence of two years of rangeland protection on aboveground vegetation biomass and the chemical composition of plants and aimed to determine the influence of seasonal grazing on the live-weight gain of small ewes. Using the line intercept method, vegetation data from protected and unprotected plots in 2015 and 2016 were collected at two sites, Dhulli and Begal. Vegetation cover was assessed from images using VegMeasure. Results showed that protected study sites displayed higher vegetation biomass (834 and 690 kg ha-1) compared to the unprotected study site (477 and 326 kg ha-1) during April and August of both years. In the seasonal grazing trial, the experimental ewes that grazed on protected rangelands showed higher live-weight gain (33–63 g day-1) compared to live weight of ewes (17–21 g day-1) that grazed on unprotected rangelands during the experimental period of 127 days at both sites. The results suggest that the Chakwal rangeland has tremendous potential to improve vegetation productivity but modern livestock management and seasonal grazing practices are needed to improve carrying capacity and livestock productivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ethiopia has a large and diverse population of small ruminants, which contribute substantially to the livelihood and income of the rural poor and the country at large. However, the sector faces a number of challenges. Productivity per animal and flock offtake are both very low. Reasons attributed for the apparent low productivity are as follows: absence of appropriate breeding programmes, lack of technical capacity, inadequate and poor‐quality feeds, diseases leading to high lamb mortality, and underdeveloped markets in terms of infrastructure and information. Historically, sheep and goats have received little policy or investment attention. Genetic improvement of small ruminants could contribute to bridging the productivity gap. In the past, the government of Ethiopia has placed much emphasis on importing exotic genetics and cross‐breeding with local stock as a strategy for genetic improvement. However, this has not led to a significant productivity improvement and the programmes have generally been unsustainable. Currently, there is a change in approach and a recognition of the need to focus genetic improvement efforts on the local genetic resources that are well adapted to the diverse agro‐ecologies and production environments in the country. Community‐based breeding programmes (CBBPs), which focus on indigenous stock and consider farmers' needs, views, decisions and active participation, from inception through to implementation, have been identified as programmes of choice. The Ethiopian government and the private sector need to invest in strategic areas around CBBPs to make the programme work for the poor and be sustainable in low‐input systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Different breeding programs were simulated and evaluated for Borana goat in pastoral production system. • Inclusion of milk yield and growth trait in the selection index resulted in a significant economic benefit. • Further optimization of mating ratio and improving kid survival were also resulted in a substantial profit. • Dispersed nucleus with 577 does in the nucleus and 3579 does in the base has been recommended. • The suggested breeding program resulted in accumulated total profit of US$14,776 over 10 years. The study simulated different potential breeding programs to design the optimal breeding structure and operational management structure for Borana goat. It evaluated different scenarios using ZPLAN+ software to maximize the genetic gain, discounted profit and to determine the optimum size of the base population for a community-based breeding program (CBBP) nucleus. The study analyzed the different combinations of objective traits in the index, assessed the effect of changing the breeding buck to doe ratio, evaluated the impact of improved kid survival, and determined the optimum size of the base population for a CBBP. A two-tier breeding program based on 577 does in the CBBP and 1,006 does in the surrounding base flocks was assumed, where selected CBBP bucks were disseminated to the base populations. Combining the weight of kids at six months (SMWT) and the lactation milk yield of dams (LMY) in the selection index resulted in a genetic gain doe−1 generation−1 of 0.13 kg, 0.58 kg, 0.02 and 0.004 for SMWT, LMY, the number of kids that survived to market age (NKS) and the number of kids born (NKB), respectively. This also generated a total discounted profit of US$5.76 doe−1 over 10 year investment period. This result was 30 percent higher than when LMY was evaluated separately and 225.7 percent higher than when SMWT was evaluated separately. The addition of NKB and NKS traits in the selection index did not significantly change the genetic progress and the profit. However, further optimization of the combined SMWT and LMY by improving mating ratio only, and a combined improvement in mating ratio and kid survival rate resulted in a substantial increase in profit to US$11.13 doe−1 and US$15.58 doe−1, respectively over 10 year investment period. The maximum discounted profit was attained when the base population size was 3,579 breeding does. This resulted in accumulated total profit of US$14,776 over the 10 year investment period. A two-tier dispersed CBBP with a unit size of about 577 does in the nucleus and 3,579 does in the base is recommended. In Borana goat community-breeding program, breeding buck need to be selected using an index combining at least own live weight and dam milk yield performance. Essential requirements for ensuring the sustainability of such programs are also discussed in the paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Abortion and neonatal losses were main reproductive problems identified. • Three abortive agents (T. gondii, Chlamydia spp. and C. burnetti) were detected. • Higher seroprevalence of Chlamydia spp. detected in studied flock. Community-based sheep breeding programs (CBBPs) were established in Ethiopia since 2010. Improved rams from CBBPs need to be disseminated. However, there is a risk of transmitting reproductive diseases to other community flocks. To investigate this a cross-sectional study was conducted in 2015/16 to determine serological status of major infectious causes of abortion and associated risk factors in sheep in the highlands of Ethiopia. A total of 120 households from three districts (Bonga, Horro and Menz) were enrolled in the study. Per farm, 3–4 samples of animals aged >2 years were collected. A total of 445 sera were tested for Chlamydia spp., Coxiella burnetti , Toxoplasma, Brucella spp. and Border disease virus. Poison regression was used to model the number of abortions, number of neonatal lost and number of stillbirths in the flocks. A mixed-effects logistic regression model was fitted to identify covariates associated with prevalence of infectious causes of abortion. The study found that 20% [95% CI 12.74, 27.26] of flocks had recent experience of sheep abortion, lamb losses was at 65% [95% CI 56.34,73.65] and still birth at 10% [95% CI 4.55,15.44]. The incidence risk ratio for abortion was higher in larger flocks. Neonatal losses were higher in C. burnetii and Toxoplasma gondii positive flocks, in one of the districts, and in flocks with more than 30 animals. The serological analyses revealed the presence of three abortive infections, while none of the samples tested positive for Brucella spp. or Border disease virus. Of the 120 flocks tested, 107 (89.17%) were positive for Chlamydia spp., 82 (68.33%) for C. burnetii , and 85 (70.83%) for T.gondii. The results highlight the likely contribution of different infectious agents in the reproductive disorders in sheep production in Ethiopia. The high sero-prevalence of infectious agents, especially Chlamydia spp., at both flock and animal level, warrants more in-depth research to attribute reproductive problems to these pathogens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]