School of Agriculture and Fisheries Sciences

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African swine fever outbreak at a farm in central Namibia
(2019) Samkange, Alaster; Mushonga, Borden; Mudimba, Douglas; Chiwome, Bernard; Jago, Mark; Kandiwa, Erick; Bishi, Alec S.; Molini, Umberto
An outbreak of African swine fever (ASF) occurred at a farm in central Namibia in March 2018. Fourteen pigs died out of a herd of 59 animals over a period of 16 days between the first and sixteenth of March 2018. The clinical signs observed included sternal recumbency, fever, weakness, pain and reluctance to move, hyperemia of the skin and anorexia, followed by death. Necropsy findings included large amounts of unclotted blood in the pleural and peritoneal cavities, diffuse carcass congestion, splenomegaly, consolidation of both lungs, hemorrhagic and frothy airways and trachea, hepatomegaly and congestion, congestion of the gastric mucosa, enlarged and congested kidneys, ecchymotic epicardial, and endocardial hemorrhages, and very enlarged and congested urinary bladder. All the remaining pigs were euthanized, burned, and buried under state veterinary supervision. The authors concluded that the outbreak resulted from indirect transmission of the ASF virus due to lapses in biosecurity measures.
Conception rates and calving intervals of different beef breeds at a farm in the semi-arid region of Namibia
(2019) Samkange, Alaster; Kandiwa, Erick; Mushonga, Borden; Bishi, Alec S.; Muradzikwa, Erdwin N.; Madzingira, Oscar
A retrospective study from 2004 to 2017 investigated the effect of bull age, cow age and breed on conception rates, and calving intervals of beef cattle at Neudamm farm, Khomas region, Namibia. Bulls ranging from 4 to 14 years of age were used to breed cows up to 17 years of age. A total of 1804 pregnancies were diagnosed in Afrikaner (81.8%), Nguni (14.1%), and Simmental (4.1%) cows. The overall conception rate of beef cattle during the study period was 71.7 ± 9.5%. The overall conception rate of the Nguni cows (78.3%) was significantly higher than that of the Afrikaner (70.9%) and the Simmental cows (64.9%) (p < 0.05). The age of sires had no effect on overall conception rate in all three breeds (p > 0.05). Afrikaner dams more than 10 years old had the least rate of conception (60.4%, p < 0.05) within that breed category. Nguni dams between four to 10 years had the greatest conception rate (86.5%, p < 0.05). Age of dams had no effect on conception rates in Simmental cattle (p > 0.05). The overall mean length of all calving intervals in the Nguni cows (366 ± 35 days) was significantly shorter than those of the Afrikaner cows (487 ± 62 days) and the Simmental cows (484 ± 110 days) (p < 0.05). The 2013 breeding season produced the highest overall conception rates (~ 85%), and the 2007 breeding season produced the lowest overall conception rate (~ 51%). From a fertility point of view, the Nguni breed seemed best suited for the semi-arid conditions which are prevalent in most of Namibia.
Evaluation of factors affecting productivity and profitability of Lohmann Brown layers in a semi-arid environment
(2020) Samkange, Alaster; Kandiwa, Erick; Mushonga, Borden; Amunyela, Selma A.; Bishi, Alec S.; Charamba, Vonai; Mbiri, Pricilla
A prospective 27-week study investigated the effect of age, ambient temperature, humidity and photoperiod on egg weight and production in Lohmann Brown layers, and thus the profitability of the egg-producing enterprise at a farm in central Namibia, designated Farm A. Overall, age of birds, average temperature, humidity and photoperiod were strongly correlated with mean egg weight (r=0.84, 0.7, -0.51 and 0.7, respectively; p<0.001) but there was a weaker correlation of age, temperature, humidity and photoperiod to the number of eggs/bird (r=0.49, 0.41, -0.43 and 0.34, respectively). Increase in the age of birds, temperature and photoperiod resulted in a significant increase in mean egg weight. A decrease in humidity, however, resulted in a significant increase in mean egg weight. Labour and feed costs contributed 51% and 14%, respectively, to the overall costs of the enterprise. Egg sales contributed the bulk of the income at 88%, which was followed by the sale of spent layers at 12%.The study concluded that Lohmann Brown layers performed well in the semi-arid conditions of central Namibia provided that extreme environmental conditions are avoided. The high input costs, especially labour and feed, were the main constraints to profitability and finding ways to reducing these costs is key to increasing profitability. Increasing the size of the flock is one practical way of offsetting the high labour costs.
Preliminary findings of a three-year retrospective study of the dynamics in red-offal condemnation at a cattle abattoir Q in Namibia
(University of Namibia, 2019) Kandiwa, Erick; Mbiri, Pricilla; Samkange, Alaster; Bishi, Alec S.; Chitate, Frank; Madzingira, Oscar; Kamwi, Jonathan M.; Mushonga, Borden
Review of the Pattela lock mechanism in the equine passive stay apparatus
(University of Namibia, 2019) Mushonga, Borden; Mbiri, Pricilla; Samkange, Alaster; Bishi, Alec S.; Chitate, Frank; Madzingira, Oscar; Kandiwa, Erick

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Browsing School of Agriculture and Fisheries Sciences by Author "Bishi, Alec S."

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