Breeding objectives, selection criteria and breeding practices of indigenous goats in Ahferom district of Central Tigray, Northern Ethiopia

BACKGROUND: Sustainable utilization of farm animal genetic resources requires a comprehensive understanding of farmer breeding management and selection criteria. However, site-specific data for indigenous goats in the Ahferom district of Northern Ethiopia was lacking. Therefore, this study aimed to characterize the breeding objectives and selection practices of 147 smallholder goat farmers across midland and lowland agro-ecologies. A pretested semi-structured questionnaire was used to gather data. In addition, focus group discussions (FGDs) were held with eight to ten knowledgeable farmers and key informants. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS statistical software. RESULTS: The goat flock structure (Mean ± Standard Error of the Mean = SEM; 17.35 ± 0.17) was characterized by a high proportion of breeding does. Farmers exhibited a strong market-oriented focus, prioritizing income generation (Index = 0.39) and meat production (0.21) as primary breeding objectives. While most farmers (61.2%) maintained their own breeding bucks, mating remained largely uncontrolled (83.0%). Selection for the next generation was driven by productivity and morphological traits, with litter size (0.29) and body conformation (0.29) identified as the top criteria for does and bucks, respectively. Castration, practiced by over 93% of respondents, was strategically timed (typically at 1-2 years of age) to maximize market value through improved body condition. CONCLUSIONS: In the Ahferom district, goat breeding objectives are multi-functional but lean toward market-oriented traits. Hence, breed improvement programs must prioritize marketable body size and rapid growth rates, which are the top ranked selection criteria for bucks while focusing on mothering ability and litter size for does. Furthermore, the significantly (p < 0.05) larger flock sizes, and higher proportion of breeding does in the lowland compared to the midland suggest that improvement strategies should be tailored to the specific management scales and environmental pressures of these distinct agro-ecological zones.