Sheep Production in the Tropics.

Abstract

This little book attempts to cover a very large subject, and the general treatment is, of necessity, superficial. Although the discussion ranges over sheep production in all tropical areas, the main emphasis lies in the tropical areas of Africa, reflecting the author's background in the Department of Animal Production, University of Nairobi, Kenya. This book is intended primarily for the diploma student and the extension officer, and provides a great deal of commonsense advice, on the management of sheep in tropical areas, which is not available elsewhere. However, the discussion devoted to the more fundamental aspects, particularly the inheritance of traits and heritability, was found by this reviewer, at least, to be difficult to follow, possibly due to its extreme brevity. The chapter on management techniques, on the other hand, is valuable in providing advice not often available for tropical environments, and is noteworthy for the many practical tips given. The importance of the flock owner keeping good records is stressed, and good advice given on the type of records required, particularly on the major components of reproductive rate. A very limited bibliography is given, and the book could be improved by more advice to the reader on further reading, particularly that supplying information of a more fundamental nature. This book, then, can be thoroughly recommended as a practical guide for sheep management in the tropics, although its treatment of the more fundamental aspects, of reproduction and genetics in particular, is limited.