Farm demographics and pig management practices of Smallholder pig farms in Kikuyu division, Kiambu district

Abstract

A cross-sectional study was conducted in a high-potential peri-urban area in Kenya to obtain baseline information on Farm Demographics and Pig management practices of Smallholder pig farms. Using a simple random selection, 87 smallholder pig farms were selected from a total of 179 farms. Data on important farm management factors including, feeding, housing, breeding, preventive measures and general husbandry practices were gathered using semi structured questionnaires.

The median farm size was 1 acre. The production system used by most farmers was farrow-to- finish. Most farms hired a boar for breeding. All farms kept crossbred pigs of large white and land race with a mean of 15.7pigs per farm. Most farms used family labor. Most farms had only basic knowledge on pig production and never sought for any extension services. In all the farms, the pigs were stall fed in simple pens throughout the year. The bulk of the feed consisted of commercial feeds followed by swill. The pig raisers supplemented the bulk component of the feeds with farm weeds, kales, green vegetables, sweet potatoes vines, pumpkin leaves and nappier grass. The preventive- medicine practices included iron-deficiency prophylaxis and mange and helminth control.