Poultry Production Methods and Common Diseases Associated With Poultry in Kogi Central

Abstract

The study was conducted to study the common diseases associated with poultry in Kogi central (Adavi, Okehi and Okene Local Government Areas), Kogi state, North Central Nigeria. Data were collected with the aid of a structured questionnaires administered with direct or verbal interview on 120 farmers in the study area. Data collected includes poultry diseases prevalent in the area, causes of mortality, mortality rates as well as vaccination schedules. The socio-characteristics of the respondents include; 71.7% male and 28.3% female made up 89.2% literate while 10.8% had no form of education (religious or western). The results showed that majority of the respondents (30.8%) were involved in poultry production, (49.2%) of the respondents spent about 10 years and above in poultry production. Most of the respondents (47.5%) turned to banks for loans to serve as capital to start up their poultry business. Majority (59.2%) respondents reported that diseases were the major causes of mortality among the birds of which 54.2% of respondents’ recorded moderate mortality. Chronic respiratory disease was the most common disease (41.7%) recorded by the respondents. Majority (57.5%) of the diseases occurred during the dry season; wet season recorded only 42.5% occurrences. It is noteworthy that most farmers (55.0%) observed proper vaccination on their birds which enhanced production. Therefore, poultry production is a good form of enterprise that create employment for farmers but measures such as proper vaccination and good management should be done to improve productivity.