Question

What are the requirements of dairy management? Give one example of each Indian and exotic breed of cow.

Answer 1

Hint:Dairy farm management is a process and system of increasing the yield and improving the quality of dairy products. Dairy products are all those products that are made up of milk or contain milk in them for example, cheese, butter, ghee, etc.

Complete answer:Dairy farming is a branch of agriculture that deals with the long-term production and processing of milk on the farms or at a dairy plant. India ranks first in the production of milk contributing up to 22 percent of global production. This is possible only if there is a good dairy management system. This milk used to produce dairy products are hugely derived from cattle, buffaloes, sheep, goats, and camels. Other less used animals for this are yaks, horses, and donkeys. All these animals are referred to as dairy animals. Milk is a very nutritious food and has a very short shelf-life as it can easily get microbial growth on it and act as an excellent growth medium for them. Hence, it is important to process the milk that may help to preserve the milk for a few more days or weeks. Processing of milk not only helps in preservation but can also produce high-value dairy products like ghee, cheese, butter, etc.
Dairy management deals with the management of animals for increasing productivity of milk in terms of quantity as well as quality. Requirements of dairy management include:
Quality of Breed: To increase productivity, it is essential to select a high-quality superior breed of dairy animal with high yielding potential having resistance to diseases. Once the selection of an excellent breed is done, the next step is to maintain the breed by allowing mating between two superior breeds.
Cleanliness and hygiene: It is very important to maintain the hygiene of cattle. The shed in which cattle are present must have proper facilities with good quality and amount of fodder to eat, clean drinking water should be available.
Maintaining health: Any disease encountered by cattle should be identified correctly on time and regular visits to veterinary doctors should be done as cattle cannot tell about their sickness, unlike humans.
Business: Finally, the produced milk and milk products are to be carefully stored, transported, and distributed.
There are many breeds of different dairy animals. A few examples of Indian cow breeds are Sahiwal, Gir, Rathi, etc. There are exotic (foreign breed) breeds as well like Jersey, Holstein Friesian, etc.

Note: Out of total milk produced in developing countries up to 80 to 90 percent of milk is produced in small-scale farming systems. Reproduction of breed is affected by few factors like environment, nutrition, adaptability of dairy animals, and genetic characteristics. Exotic breeds are brought to an area for crossbreeding.