One of the roles of agricultural extension is to help farmers upgrade their skills and/or develop new skills. Yet, skills are not developed through singular training interventions; their refinement requires practice and support from various actors and institutions. A 'social ecosystems' framework can help clarify the role of extension in developing agricultural skills in complex social and institutional settings. Through interviews with agricultural extension officers from State Agricultural Universities and Krishi Vigyan Kendras in northern India's Himalayan region, this study examines how extensionists function as 'mediators' within social ecosystems. We distinguish between two types of mediation: institutional mediation-connecting farmers with formal institutions' supports and resources-and social mediation-helping farmers navigate social barriers that constrain skill development and utilisation. Our findings reveal that while extensionists routinely engage in institutional mediation, social mediation occurs inconsistently. The study documents substantive-but often institutionally invisible-extensionist mediation work, identifies factors that enable or constrain effective mediation, and explores how other actors-including government departments, NGOs, and input vendors-complement extensionist mediation. We conclude with recommendations for better supporting extensionist mediation and consider implications for the development of the social ecosystems model as a tool for analysing extension systems.

"This unique text serves as the key to unlocking the enigmatic aspects of gender in the context of animal husbandry. Whether you are a student, instructor, researcher, or a professional in the field, this text offers a comprehensive resource for navigating the evolving landscape of gender in animal husbandry and veterinary sciences. Designed with the learner in mind, this text presents a varied assortment of engaging question types, including multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blank, and scenario-based inquiries. Get ready to test your knowledge, challenge your perspectives, and deepen your understanding of the intricate relationship between gender and animal husbandry. As you delve into the text, you will encounter questions that urge you to reflect on the complex relationship between gender and animal husbandry. From differentiating gender from sex to exploring the roles of women in the field, each chapter provides an exceptional learning experience. Whether you are a student preparing for exams, a teacher searching for captivating resources, or a development professional investigating gender dynamic, this text caters to a diverse audience. Its structure accommodates various learning needs, making it a valuable asset for anyone interested in the world of animal husbandry. The text is divided into two sections. Section A presents Short Analytical Questions, promoting critical thinking and in-depth analysis. Section B offers Objective Questions to evaluate your knowledge on specific gender and animal husbandry topics. This text is designed for students, researchers, and anyone curious about the intricate relationship between gender and animal husbandry. It serves as a valuable resource for those exploring gender dynamics in animal husbandry practices and advocating for equality within the farming community. "

This research explores milk production practices in Haryana, India, with a focus on identifying zoonotically undesirable practices in commercial dairy farming compared to smallholder dairy farming. The study employed a multistage random sampling technique to observe and document farming practices, including preparation, milking, and storage. Key findings reveal discrepancies in infrastructure, hygiene, and equipment choices between commercial and household dairy farmers. Commercial farmers generally exhibited better practices, such as maintaining short fingernails and covering their hair, while household farmers displayed room for improvement in personal hygiene. Vaccination and disease monitoring were also more prevalent among commercial farmers. However, both groups need education on milking techniques, udder cleaning, and proper handling and storage practices to enhance milk quality and animal health. This study underscores the importance of targeted interventions to promote safer and higher-quality milk production in the dairy industry.

The present study was undertaken to investigate the effect of zinc (Zn) supplementation alone and its combination with vitamin E on growth, anti oxidant status and immunity status of new born calves of crossbred cows. The cows were supplemented with Zn @ 0 ppm (T0), Zn @ 80 ppm (T1) and Zn @80 ppm + 1000 IU α-tocopheryl acetate/d (T2) from 60 days prepartum up to 90 days postpartum. The fat, SNF, total solid, protein, Zn and Cu contents content of colostrum showed no effect of dietary treatments but α-tocopherol content was higher(P<0.01) in group T2 as compared to other groups. Total immunoglobulin in colostrum of T2 group was 25.87% higher than control. There was no effect of dietary treatments on plasma Zn and Cu levels of calves, however α-tocopherol concentration at day 5 was higher (P<0.05) in group T2 as compared to other groups. Status of antioxidant enzymes, lymphocyte proliferation index,total and differential leukocyte count was not affected by the treatments. Higher birth weight (P<0.05) was obtained in groupT2 group as compared to other group. Calves from treatment groups showed lower incidence of morbidity and mortality due to calf scour and other infectious diseases compared to control

Background: The present study assessed the impact of Agricultural Skill Council of India (ASCI) funded dairy training programme conducted at CSKHPKV Palampur, Himachal Pradesh. These skill development training programs of 200 contact hours trained 40 participants in two trainings conducted in 2018 and 2019. Impact of these trainings was understood by studying changes in adoption, herd size, milk production and capital investments made before and after the trainings. Methods: A semi-structured interview schedule was designed for the collection of data before the start of training programme to assess socio-economic profile, herd size, milk production and adoption of various dairy farming practices. Post training data in March 2021 was collected to study the impact of trainings. The adoption index was calculated by procedure laid out by Mande and Thombre (2009) and Godara et al. (2018). Result: Significant differences in adoption of various practices before and after training were observed with few notable practices such as silage making, castration of male calves, screening of animals for sub clinical mastitis, cattle insurance and biogas production which scored lower adoption even post training. Lack of proper financial support from the banks, poor milk marketing and other socio-psychological factors prevented farmers from reaping full benefits post training.

Tick infestation is a major problem affecting farm animal welfare and productivity. The study was conducted to assess the nature of tick infestation, awareness and methods of tick control among eight purposively selected village panchayats of district Kangra, Himachal Pradesh. Further out of these 8 panchayats, 200 dairy farmers were randomly selected during 2018-2019.The study indicated that tick infestation is acute in hilly regions of Himachal, India and farmers rely mainly on animal husbandry institutions for seeking scientific inputs/information. Synthetic acaricides were widely in practice (100.0%), though 40 percent of farmers relied on both synthetic and indigenous herbal medications. The high use of acaricides was due to the presence of veterinary institutions in every village panchayat in the region. The majority of dairy farmers (79.5%) reported that these synthetic acaricides were effective up to 30 days only and recurrent infestation on animals was noticed. Suitable extension interventions for improved housing management and proper tick disposal must be applied to overcome the problem in the region.

An attempt has been made to analyse the trends in livestock population in Himachal Pradesh in last two decades. Minor livestock species like Yak, Pig, Horse, Mule, Donkey and Camel population was excluded from the study as their all combined population accounted for only 1% of the total livestock population in the state in the 20th livestock census. The percent growth rates were calculated for all inter census period from 1997 to 2019. The study concluded that total livestock population in Himachal Pradesh has shown negative trend over the years 1997-2019. Except for the 190.2 % growth of crossbred/ exotic cattle population in the state, all other including Indigenous cattle, Buffalo, sheep and goat population has shown negative growth in the mentioned period i.e. 1997-2019. The recent census has recorded negative growth rate for all livestock species excluding crossbred cattle.

Community fodder banks have been advocated as one of the promising solutions to minimize fodder scarcity in India. Unfortunately, the popularization of such extension activities has remained woefully weak across the country and very few initiatives have been undertaken in this regard. An action-oriented participatory approach was initiated in the Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh to establish community fodder banks. The approach involved convergence among CSK Himachal Pradesh Agricultural University, Palampur; Himmothan Society, Palampur; NABARD, Shimla; local Panchayati Raj institutions and ICAR-IVRI, Palampur. The women dairy farmers were mobilized into self-help groups. Awareness meetings followed by site selection, cleaning of the area, land preparation, plantation, fencing and periodical visits were conducted. Four community fodder banks were established in waste and unused common lands, and 669.53 quintals of green fodder was harvested at established fodder banks in 1 year period (July 2020-August 2021). The cost of setting up fodder banks in the convergence approach ranged from `1.03 lakhs to `2.05 lakhs. The transformation of wasteland into fodder plots through project intervention has improved fodder availability in the region and will expand livestock-based livelihoods. The public-private partnership mode helped to bring convergence in activities of the project implementing organizations through sharing of work, strengths and knowledge exchange.

Dairy farming, in spite of being a major livelihood source in the hilly state of Himachal Pradesh, often faces many issues such as lower price realisation for milk. The organized milk marketing structure of the state is one of the weakest in the country. Lower remunerative returns have affected the attitude of farmers towards dairy farming. As a solution to such problems, innovative farmer organisations are making progress in the state. These organisations offer input services at lower prices at farmers' doorstep. They also buy milk at prices higher than prevailing rates. The reported evidences of dairy interventions through farmer producer organizations are still minimal from this region. The present study assessed the functioning of dairy based producer organisations in hills of Himachal Pradesh. Three farmer producer organizations engaged in community mobilization through Self Help Groups were selected for the study. The benefits accrued by members of these organisations range from input availability, extension advisory, credit support and veterinary services.

The present study aimed at assessing the epidemiology and associated risk factors of ixodid ticks from Shivalik hill zone of Himachal Pradesh, India. A total of 602 cattle of different age, breeds, and sex were screened for the occurrence of ixodid ticks from six districts from March, 2019 to February, 2020. The associated data were recorded for the risk factor assessment. The overall tick prevalence was recorded to be 66.4%. Three tick species were found prevalent viz., Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus (68.4%), Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) annulatus (30.85%), and Hyalomma anatolicum anatolicum (0.74%). The highest prevalence was recorded during the monsoon season (74.9%) (OR: 1.25; 0.65-1.86) followed by summer (65.3%) and lowest in winter season (59.4%) (OR: 0.64; 0.26-0.79). Agewise, tick infestation was observed to be highest in age group >1 year (76.5%) (OR: 6.37; 3.32-12.21) followed by age group >6 months-1 year (38.8%) (OR: 9.09; 4.67-17.69) and the lowest in <= 6 months age (29.3%). The prevalence rate was found to be more in female cattle (71.6%) in comparison to males (23.4%). Breedwise, the highest tick infestation was observed in cross-bred Jersey (69.8%) (OR: 3.51; 1.59-7.76) followed by cross-bred Holstein Friesian (69.6%) (OR: 0.95; 0.51-1.75) and lowest in indigenous cattle (45.0%). The risk factors related to management practices revealed that the prevalence of ixodid ticks was significantly (P < 0.05) less when the animals were kept in pucca sheds with acaricide application done both on body and shed with reapplication in 3 months. The odds of tick infestation were high in cattle population in Solan (OR: 2.29; 1.05-5.02) and least in Hamirpur in comparison to Kangra region (reference district) when the regression analysis of the risk factors associated with tick prevalence was studied. The current study represents the first report determining the epidemiological status of ixodid ticks in Shivalik hill zone region and findings of the study would provide a basis for generating new and effective control strategies for management the management of ticks in cattle population of the region.

Livestock production in India is dominated by marginal, small and landless farmers. Huge number (100 million) of small holder farmers in India contributes to 90% of livestock production (Leitch et al., 2014). These marginal and small farmers contribute to 73% of total milk production in India (Kumar et al., 2018). Such farmers face innumerable constraints: lack of quality feed and fodder, high cost of inputs, weak extension support, lack of timely veterinary services and lower prices of milk (Kumar and Parappurathu, 2014). On the other hand, the institutions dealing with these smallholder farmers also face challenges; smaller scale of operations of these farmers, scattered locations, underdeveloped infrastructure to access them, involvement of multiple intermediaries and low marketable surplus (Trebbins and Hassler, 2012; Satyasai and Mehrotra, 2016) .Collective action of the farmers can minimize most of these problems. Farmer producer organizations are recognized instruments of collective action in India (Kujur et al., 2019). International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences ISSN: 2319-7706 Volume 9 Number 11 (2020) Journal homepage: http://www.ijcmas.com

An ingenious way of livestock service delivery at farmers’ doorstep through Mobile Veterinary Units (MVUs) under Rastriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) is operational in all the 314 blocks of Odisha, with one of the objectives being to educate people on scientific livestock farming technologies. The study was conducted with a sample size of 90 farmers and 23 veterinary service providers viz., Veterinary Surgeons (VSs) and Livestock Inspectors (LIs) to analyze the efficacy of extension service delivery by MVUs and farmers’ demand for livestock extension activities. The study concluded that, MVU professionals were very often associated with activities viz., awareness camp and home visit. Besides these, supply driven activities, input supply and training programmes for better animal husbandry were the most needed activities by the farmers. The service providers expressed that lack of time for extension activities and unawareness of farmers about importance of extension activities, were the major problems they faced while performing extension activities.

Sound health and regular calving in milch animals is a prerequisite for successful and profitable dairy farming. In hilly areas due to tough terrain farmers are often unable to take their animal to nearby veterinary institution on time and the livestock is often affected by several reproductive disorders. To overcome these disorders and ensure better reproductive performance in buffaloes a number of indigenous feeding practices are prevalent among the dairy farmers. In the present manuscript these traditional feeding practices has been documented in agroclimatic zone I and II of Himachal Pradesh, India by using participatory rural appraisal technique. These practices are divided into three categories viz. those intended to improve conception rate, those which help the animals to successfully carry the pregnancy and those which are followed around calving time. The documented practices were scientifically validated by consulting practicing veterinarians, experts on animal nutrition, livestock production management and veterinary gynecology and obstetrics in the region as well as by consulting available relevant literature. It was concluded that majority of these practices bear some scientific rationale while some needs to be corrected and some require further investigation.