Wednesday, January 31, 2024

Information Session on Climate-Smart Practices for Alabama Farmers and Educators

Experts from Tuskegee University and Alabama A&M University are conducting VIRTUAL information sessions for Alabama farmers and educators working with farmers to inform them about the various Climate-Smart agricultural practices and opportunity for interested farmers to enroll for participation. The initial virtual sessions are scheduled for  February 1, 8, 15, 29, 2024, 6-7 PM central standard time. 

Pre-Registration is required to attend the session. Please see below:

Register in advance for this meeting:

https://tuskegee.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJYldu-gqDoqGdFQ_gUR4g3SZBXu3oFzW6mi  

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.


Wednesday, January 17, 2024

Job Opportunity @ Tuskegee

Seeking applications for the following positions:

 

1. Agroforestry Project Coordinator


Essential Duties: 

  • Plan and organize quarterly meetings for project partners.
  • Participate in relevant meetings, seminars, and conferences, and present the project results and outcomes as necessary.
  • Prepare agroforestry, climate-smart educational materials.
  • Plan, advertise, and organize training sessions, workshops, and field days.
  • Inform, educate, and help farmers and landowners from the southeast USA apply for incentives for agroforestry-based climate-smart practices.
  • Coordinate and provide/arrange for needed technical assistance for farmers and landowners implement selected agroforestry practices.
  • Carry out day-to-day project-related activities: planning, implementation, monitoring, evaluation, and reporting. 
  • Collect and compile accomplishments and prepare quarterly and annual progress reports.
  • Prepare a comprehensive final report of the project.
  • Carry out other relevant activities as directed by the supervisor. 

Essential Qualifications: 

Bachelor’s degree (or higher) in Agroforestry, Silvopasture, Animal Science, Alley cropping, Horticulture, or other areas of Agricultural Sciences and five years’ experience in relevant fields.

Desired Qualifications:

Master’s degree (or higher) in Agroforestry, Silvopasture, Animal Science, Alley cropping, Horticulture, or other areas Agricultural Sciences and two years’ experience in relevant fields.

For more information and application, please visit this Job Site


2. Climate-Smart Project Associate


Essential duties: 

  • Schedule and conduct project meetings and educational events.
  • Prepare and submit documentation for purchasing project items and keep track of those.
  • Collect, process, and analyze samples and data related to project work.
  • Work with participant farmers, orient them to keep records related to climate-smart practices, collect and analyze data.
  • Prepare drafts for quarterly, annual, and final progress reports.
  • Take care of day-to-day project-related activities.
  • Perform other relevant activities as directed by the supervisor.

Essential Qualifications: 

Bachelor’s degree in agricultural sciences with a concentration in agroforestry, silvopasture, animal science, or similar fields with three years of experience.

Desired Qualifications:

Master’s degree in similar areas and one year of experience in the relevant fields.

For more information and application, please visit this Job Site




Wednesday, September 20, 2023

Conference Abstracts

PSV-4 Confinement Influenced the Diurnal Behavior and Distribution Pattern of Katahdin Rams and Kiko Wethers in Southern-pine Silvopastures. - S Poudel, U Karki, Y Karki, A Tillman, L Karki

365 The Extent and Pattern of Correlation Among Blood Parameters Differed Between Pasture-raised Goats and Sheep - Uma Karki, Anand Tiwari, Kendra Norwood, Ja’Nia Johnson, Lila B Karki

677 Prevalent weeds in a southern-pine silvopasture system managed with Kiko wethers - U. Karki, S. Poudel, Y. Karki, A. Tillman

49 Performance, Carcass Characteristics, and Meat Quality of Kiko Wethers Finished on Pasture and Browse. - U Karki, S Poudel, S Bhattrai, L Karki, A Singh

234 Woodlands for Expanding the Grazing Opportunity for Small Ruminants in the Southeast: Challenges and Opportunities - Uma Karki, Bidur Paneru, Shailes Bhattrai, Nevershi Ellis, Lila B Karki

93 Health and Performance of Ewes in Woodland and Silvopasture Systems - Nevershi Ellis, Uma Karki, Bidur Paneru, Lila B Karki

10 Behavior and Landscape-Use Pattern of Small Ruminants Co-grazed in Woodlands with different Vegetation Characteristics  - Bidur Paneru, Uma Karki, Nevershi Ellis, shailes Bhattrai, Lila B Karki

097 Grazing Behavior and Distribution Patterns of Kiko Wethers in Southern-Pine Silvopastures - U. Karki, Y. Karki, R. Khatri, A. Tillman, N. Gurung

Woodland Grazing: Untapped Resource to Increase Economic Benefits from Forestland - Lila B Karki, Uma Karki, Anand Tiwari

176 Costs for Supplementing Small Ruminants Under the Various Grazing-Based Production Systems - Uma Uma Karki, Bhuwan Shrestha, Santoshi Chaudhary, Anand Tiwari, Lila B Karki

PSIII-13 Performance and Resiliency of Lactating Does and Their Kids in Woodlands with Supplemental Feedstuffs or Grazing - Bhuwan Shrestha, Uma Karki, Santoshi Chaudhary, Anand Tiwari, Lila B Karki

105 Integrated approach for controlling diseases and parasites in small ruminants: extension education and adoption - Uma Karki, Lila Karki, Nar Gurung

408 Market Opportunity for Goat and Lamb Meat in the Southeastern US. - L Karki, U Karki, S Mendreddy, S Poudel, S Bhattrai

037 Composition and Quality Assessment of the Woodland Browse Species and Goats' Performance Study under Woodland - R. Khatri, U. Karki, Y. Karki, N. Gurung, B. R. Min

Body Condition Score for Monitoring the Performance and Health of Small Ruminants in Field Conditions - Uma Karki, Anand Tiwari, Kendra Norwood, Ja’Nia Johnson, Lila B Karki

Legume-grass Pastures Enhanced the Performance of Kiko Does - Anand Tiwari, Uma Karki, Kendra Norwood, Ja’Nia Johnson, Lila B Karki

364 Blood Profile of Kiko Does Raised on Grass-legume-mixed Pastures vs. Sole-grass Pastures During Fall - Anand Tiwari, Uma Karki, Kendra Norwood, Ja’Nia Johnson, Lila B Karki

125 Possibility of Shifting Domestic Supply Curve for Lamb and Goat Meat: The Case of Market Price Information in the Southeast USA - Lila B Karki, Uma Karki, Srinivasa R Mentreddy

92 Health and Performance of Ewes in Woodland and Silvopasture Systems - Nevershi Ellis, Uma Karki, Bidur Paneru, Lila B Karki

178 Use of silvopastures and woodlands to expand the grazing opportunity for small ruminants - Uma Karki

19 Sustainable Pasture Improvement and Grazing Management Education Program for Farmers - Uma Karki

134 Vegetation characteristics and diurnal periods influenced the landscape-use pattern of goats and sheep in woodlands - Shailes Bhattrai, Uma Karki, Sanjok Poudel

PSIV-21 Landscape-use pattern and performance of small ruminants in woodlands with altering understory vegetation heights - Shailes Bhattrai, Uma Karki, Bidur Paneru, Nevershi Ellis, Sanjok Poudel

16 Supplement Type Influenced the Immune Response of Nursing Ewes to the Natural Challenge of Gastrointestinal Parasites While Grazing in Woodlands - Santoshi Chaudhary, Uma Karki, Bhuwan Shrestha, Sadikshya Lamsal

PSVII-10 Small Ruminants’ Preference for and Performance on Woodland Vegetation Maintained at Different Heights during Fall  - S Bhattrai, U Karki, S Poudel

2 Vegetation characteristics and diurnal periods influenced the landscape-use pattern of goats and sheep in woodlands - Shailes Bhattrai, Uma Karki, Sanjok Poudel

PSI-18 Performance of kiko wethers and katahdin rams co-stocked in woodlands with diverse vegetation - Bidur Paneru, Uma Karki, Nevershi Ellis, Shailes Bhattrai

_______

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7268-2747  

Thursday, September 14, 2023

Theses: Small Ruminant Production, Grazing, Health

 Graduate Students' Theses

Bhattrai, Shailes.   Tuskegee University ProQuest Dissertations Publishing,  2019. 30521879.


Shrestha, Bhuwan.   Tuskegee University ProQuest Dissertations Publishing,  2022. 29996670.

Friday, July 28, 2023

Goat Marketing in the Southeast US

 Marketing of meat goats and their products in the Southeast USA - Producers' perspectives

Goat experts from seven land-grant universities (Langston, Tuskegee, Virginia State, Tennessee, Fort Valley State, Florida A&M, Prairie View A&M) from the southeast USA are working together to promote the sustainable goat industry in this region. One of the challenges this team has realized is the marketing issues producers are facing in this region. Therefore, this team is conducting a survey study with producers from the Southeast Region (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Puerto Rico, and US Virgin Islands). The aim of this study is to help meat goat producers from the Southeast overcome challenges in marketing goats and goat products. Based on the survey results, strategies will be developed and used to educate goat producers to overcome the marketing challenges. All goat producers in the southeast USA are requested to take the survey below to help develop the marketing strategies for goats and goat products. The survey will take approximately 15 minutes to complete. However, it may take longer (up to 45 minutes) when internet is slow and/or other circumstances requiring more time. To take the survey, either click the surveylink  or scan and use the QR code in the image below. 
SurveyLink

Your response is extremely valuable to understand the challenges you are facing and develop marketing strategies to overcome them. Please feel free to share this message and survey link to your fellow goat producers from the Southeast. We need as many responses as possible to gather necessary information in order to develop strategies that help producers marketing their goats and goat products in the southeast US.

Thank you in advance for taking the time and completing this survey!


Friday, July 14, 2023

Master Goat Producer's Certification Training, Tuskegee University, Alabama

Tuskegee University Master goat producer's certification training, July 31-August 2, 2023 at Tuskegee University, Alabama; more information is available at this LINK.

Monday, May 8, 2023

Training @ Tuskegee University - Integrated Approach for Preventing Diseases and Parasites in Small Ruminants

 Hands-on Training for Farmers and Professionals

8:30 AM to 5:00 PM, June 23, 2023
Caprine Research & Education Unit , Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, AL 36088


The purpose of this training is to educate small-ruminant producers, Extension professionals, and other educators on the integrated approach for preventing diseases and parasites in small ruminants (goats and sheep). Major topics include components of integrated approach, biosecurity, improvement of grazing lands and sustainable grazing, basic healthcare and FAMACHA system, and highlights of recent research. Hands-on activities will include general health inspection, use of FAMACHA card, body condition score, hoof inspection and trimming, taking temperature, copper wire particle, BioWorma, fecal sample collection, and more. More information about the event is presented in the Agenda.



Preregistration by May 31 is required to participate in this event for management purpose. Register and secure your seat on time. Working lunch and snacks as well as a package of educational materials including the FAMACHA card ($13.00 value) will be provided. 

Monday, March 27, 2023

Tuskegee Goat Day 2023

Annual Goat Day will be held on Saturday, April 22, 2023 from 8:30 am to 3:30 pm. Theme: Improving Marketability Strategies using Value-Added Processing. More information and registration details