ATTITUDE OF BULGARIAN DAIRY FARMERS TOWARDS THE EXTENSION SERVICES AND SPECIALIZED ASSISTANCE USED IN THEIR ACTIVITIES

The aim of this survey was to understand the attitudes about and satisfaction of dairy farmers in Bulgaria from the use and benefits of extension services and specialized assistance in their activities in the farms. A survey was conducted with 120 owners of dairy cattle farms from different regions of the country. The survey includes 152 questions related to various organizational, economic, production, socio-political, social, etc. problems concerning Bulgarian agriculture and, more specifically, dairy cattle breeding. Farmers use various consulting services, which shows that with the increasing capacity of farms, there is a rising interest and participation in various forms of consultations and in all areas of production. Farmers' satisfaction with training is high, with the greatest interest related to current problems in their own farms, or their future prospects. They are informed mainly by visits to fairs, exhibitions and demonstrations, and personal meetings/contacts with other farmers. The largest share of farmers use specialized services related to reproduction and animal nutrition. There is a clear trend for an increase in health problems related to the udder, limbs and hooves of animals in large farms. The main organizational factors that inspire trust in consulting services are reliability in adhering to contracts, good equipment, available laboratories and professional skills. Factors on site that lead to poor results from consulting services are poor professional qualification of the farm staff and the partial implementation of the prescriptions by the consulting specialists.