OTJIWARONGO, Namibia (21 July 2018) – Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) will be hosting a goat farming seminar on 7 Aug 2018. The one day seminar will emphasise dairy goats, and it will be led by Dr Terry Gipson, an internationally recognised goat expert from Langston University’s E (Kika) de la Garza American Institute for Goat Research.
Seminar topics include:
• Improving Goat Flocks/Herds
• Artificial Insemination in Dairy Goats
• Breeding Strategies and Objectives for Small Ruminants in the Tropics
• Genomics in Small Ruminant Production with Breeding Objectives Emphasised
Registration fee is N$300.00. Lunch is included. Camping is available with prior reservations. To register for the seminar and make camping reservations, please contact: Dr. Laurie Marker
phone: 067 306225 or 081-1247887, email: director@cheetah.org.
CCF and E (Kika) de la Garza American Institute for Goat Research Partnership
CCF received a grant from the Kirkpatrick Foundation in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, to work with professors from the E (Kika) de la Garza American Institute for Goat Research to develop best goat farming methodologies. CCF maintains herds of dairy goats in conjunction with its Livestock Guarding Dog Programme and Model Farm. In 2009, CCF began making cheese products from their goat’s milk. In 2013, CCF opened the Dancing Goat Creamery at its Centre expand the products (cheese, ice cream, fudge, soap). The Dancing Goat Creamery doubles as test facility for developing new products and ancillary revenue streams from goat milk and a training facility for rural farmers and University of Namibia Food Science students.
Improving livelihoods for goat farmers is central to CCF’s holistic approach to cheetah conservation, which carefully considers the needs of humans and livestock and wildlife sharing farmlands. CCF hopes the partnership with the American Institute for Goat Research will produce results that benefit Namibian goat farmers.
The American Institute for Goat Research has been located at Langston University, a school of agriculture and applied sciences in Langston, Oklahoma, in the United States, since 1984. The Institute’s mission is to develop and transfer enhanced goat production system technologies, with impacts at state, regional, national and international levels. The Institute has a long history of working with countries in Africa, beginning in the mid-1900’s with research collaborations with Ethiopian universities. Those efforts have expanded to other African countries and now include both research and extension education/training activities.
“We are very pleased to be embarking upon this collaboration with Dr Gipson and other researchers from the E (Kika) de la Garza American Institute for Goat Research. We are excited about the potential impact for Namibian goat farmers, and we are very thankful to the Kirkpatrick Foundation for making this partnership possible”, said Dr Laurie Marker, CCF Founder and Executive Director.
While at CCF, Dr Gipson will also conduct advanced training sessions for CCF farm staff and Future Farmers of Africa programme trainers.