Breeding practices and trait preferences among smallholder cattle keepers in Somalia: a participatory survey

Somali smallholders depend on four indigenous cattle ecotypes; however, their breeding decisions have never been quantified. We conducted a participatory cross-sectional survey of 320 households drawn from four districts in southern Somalia Luuq, Baidoa, Jowhar and Afgooye, each dominated by the following indigenous ecotypes: Boran, Surqa, Dawara and Gasara. A semi-structured questionnaire, administered individually to each household head, captured herd demographics, production goals, trait preferences and mating management. The majority of respondents were men (55%), lived in large households (mean ≈10 people) and kept herds averaging 30 head. Livelihood security dominated production objectives: cash income, milk and meat were prioritised over manure or draught. Bull ownership exceeded 88% and mating was largely uncontrolled, with 53%–76% of bulls servicing both owner and neighbour herds. Despite this, clear phenotypic selection was practised: body size and milk yield topped the criteria for cows, while body size, coat colour and growth dominated the criteria for bulls. Body-size indices ranged from 0.212 to 0.379 for cows and from 0.185 to 0.298 for bulls. Up to 51% of keepers castrate bulls, mainly for fattening or mating control. Significant differences (P < 0.001) among the four ecotypes in bull service patterns, replacement sources and castration motives underline the need for ecotype-specific programmes. This study provides the first systematic baseline on Somali cattle breeding and shows that farmer-centred programmes can pair simple trait indices with community bull management to increase productivity while meeting FAO conservation-through-use targets for local genetic resources.