CHARACTERISTICS OF AFRICAN DWARF SHEEP REARING SYSTEMS USED IN THE NORTH AND SOUTH OF BENIN

The study aims to compare the rearing system characteristics of Djallonke sheepin the
North and South of Benin. Data were collected on 133 sheep breeders in the North and 154
farms in the South of Benin from September to November 2015. It comes out from the
survey that the sheep breeders were predominantly a man (p <0.001). Fulani represent the
more important ethnic group of shepherds in the North while in the South zone, Fon ethnic
group predominate. The sheep owners of the two zones are married. The rate of nonschooled
farmers is more important in the North (79.70%) than in the South (38.96%; p
<0.001). Their main activity was essentially livestock breeding in the North region
(63.91%) to agriculture (46.75%) in the South. The majority of farmers in the North
(75.94%) and South (59.74%) raise the animals as savings (p <0.001). The sale and
consumption constitute the main production goals (45.86% and 69.93%, respectively in the
North and South; p <0.001). Animal feeds in both areas are provided by fodder, crop
residues, and kitchen residues. Only a few farmers (26.62% - 29.32%) store some feeds for
the dry season. Herd size is highest in the North than in the South (31.51 vs 17.67 heads; p
<0.001). 69.17% of surveyed farms in the North have no habitat while 66.23% of the
surveyed farms south have traditional shelters. The grazing time is longer in North than in
south (7.92 vs 7.09 hours, p <0.001). The management of the farms are based on the owner
or itfamily financing support with a predominance in the North (p. <0.001). Several species
including poultry, goats and cattle were associated to the sheep rearing. The diversity of
these systems of production must be taken into account for purposes of Djallonke sheep
development.