Journal of Agriculture and Environment for International Development 2009, 103 (3): 155-172

Observations on cattle dairy breeds in Pakistan;

need to curb unseen economic losses through
control of mastitis and endemic diseases*
M. B. Kenyanjui, M. Sheikh-Ali
International Committee of the Red Cross and German Red Cross Societies (ICRC/ GRC),
19 Avenue De La Paix, 1202, Geneve, Switzerland, e-mail: mattkenyanjui@hotmail.com
A. Ghaffar
Livestock and Dairy Development Board, Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock, House
434, Street 67, G-11/2 Islamabad, Pakistan
Abstract: In October 2005 a devastating earthquake caused extensive damage among
populations in Pakistan administered Kashmiri Region and parts of North Western
Frontier. In addition to the loss of more than 87`000 human lives and 70`000 injured,
many livestock namely buffaloes, cattle and goats were lost. This eroded the livelihoods
of families that solely relied on livestock and agriculture for their economic survival.
The International Committee of the Red Cross together with the German Red Cross
(ICRC/ GRC) and the Kashmiri authorities formulated a project that sought to restore
the livelihoods of the most vulnerable households to a level comparable to before the
earthquake. The project adapted an agro-vet and micro-economic approach, part of which
included the provision of a milking cow and calf.
This report indicates that antibiotics and homoeopathic medicines provide similar levels
of protection against mastitis (Spranger, 2000). Preventive measures like vaccinations,
disinfectant footbaths and reducing stress during the critical time of calving goes a long
way towards improving the overall health of the dairy cows (Dettloff, 2005). Although
milking is in many cases still done by hand, pre-milking and post-milking hygienic
procedures, such as udder washing and drying greatly decrease prevalence of mastitis.

Keywords: Dairy cattle, breed colorations, mastitis, Pakistan

* A Red cross livestock distribution project 2007

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Observations on cattle dairy breeds in Pakistan

Background
There are over 24 million cattle in Pakistan; 46% of which are in Punjab
Province, Sindh has 26%, NWFP 21%, Balochistan 6% and Northern areas nearly
2% (Ministry of Agriculture Livestock Census, 1996).
About 75 per cent of the rural population are dependent on livestock rearing
for their livelihood (Junejo, 2007). Livestock contribute about 9.4 per cent to the
Gross Domestic Product GDP, and 40 per cent value addition to agriculture
sector. More than 90 per cent of the farmers are small holders and own about 1
to 4 animals.
The per capita per annum availability of milk in the country is 80.5 litres, with
over 31 million tons of milk produced during 2005-06 making Pakistan the 5th
largest producer of milk in the world. Its yield per animal however is only one fifth
that of Western Europe (Ali Tanvir). The dairy industry of Pakistan is constrained
by a number of factors that include: low genetic potential of animals, poor animal
health, improper feeding and housing for animals, insufficient transportation and
low quality of milk. Lack of commercial dairy farms is also a limiting factor to the
dairy sector in Pakistan.
Introduction
Livestock are also assets; ways of storing and transforming wealth so as to
generate income, or to smooth out sharp variations in income and consumption
on account of such natural disasters and economic shocks(Government of
Pakistan, 2003). It has been estimated 70% of poor and food insecure people
reside in rural areas and depend directly or indirectly on agriculture for their
livelihood (Ali Muhammad Amjad et al., 2007).
In line with meeting the objective of ameliorating some of the effects of the
disaster the project tendered, procured and distributed milking cows with their
calves to pre-selected beneficiaries.
Households that were classified as vulnerable included households that had:
1 - Either lost all animals in the EQ and were not able to rebuild these assets
on their own
2 - Households headed by widows,
3 - Or poor HH that never had owned animals pre- EQ but had dependent
children 12 years old or less.
The criteria were kept flexible as the communities were slowly recovering and
some were able to afford milking goats but were still in need of a dairy cow.

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157

Beneficiaries are linked to a local community animal health worker and the
restocking programme was confined to a community animal health worker
training programme. Necessary training on management and proper nutrition was
also provided to beneficiaries prior to receiving the dairy cow.
Methodology
In 2007, 2,109 cows and their calves were purchased, by contracted suppliers,
from markets in Punjab and NWFP Provinces. The cattle underwent a validation
screening process before delivery to the ICRC/ GRC distribution point in
Kashmiri Province.
The source of animals was an issue as not enough numbers could be procured
around the disaster affected area. The provision of lowland cattle into highland
areas is subject to challenge especially regarding their adaptability to altitude,
climate and the scarce feed resources.
The supplier companies, namely Fawad Steel Corporation FSC, Hassan
Enterprises HE and Green Services Sector GSS setup their validation centers in
Lahore, Rawalpindi and Peshawar. Cows were trucked in from Punjab livestock
markets in Sahiwal, Okara, Gujranwala, Sialkot, Sheikhupura, Chichawatni and
Multan among others while in NWFP cattle came from Peshawar, the Swat valley
and Gilgit. The project interventions tried not to disrupt normal activities at
livestock markets nor contribute to increase in prices or artificial scarcities of
supply of animals to other buyers. Animals were purchased through suppliers on
the various market days.
At the validation centres the pair of dairy cow and calf was inspected for
conformity to specifications on suitable breed, age, weight (as larger cows were
deemed not suitable in the high mountainous areas of PAK) and milk production.
Selection criteria
1 - Cows were chosen that exhibited dairy characteristics (small or no hump,
good firm udder, long slim legs and good pastern area); initially crosses of the
local desi breeds Cholistani, Lohani, Dhanni, Rohjan, Dajal with improved breeds
like Sahiwal, Jersey or Friesian were accepted but this was later refined to select
animals that exhibited unambiguous Sahiwal or Jersey characteristics and qualities
(i.e. animals that possessed more of either Sahiwal or Jersey features than traits of
any of the other local breeds).
2 - Cattle were required to have between 220 - 390 kilograms body weight

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Observations on cattle dairy breeds in Pakistan

measured using a calibrated Rondo combined measuring tape (Weight

estimation using tape Rondo). The chest circumference of the animal was
measured behind the humps of the elbow joints and the weight reading taken
directly from the conversion on the reverse side. The expected accuracy is within
5% of actual body weight especially for animals that had completed a long journey
from markets.
3 - Cows had to be in early lactation stage i.e. nursing its own calf aged 1 - 10
weeks old and consistently yielding a minimum of 5 litres of milk per day after
nursing the calf (extracted milk was observed and recorded over at least three
consecutive milkings). The milk obtained during the monitoring was sold, by the
suppliers, through middlemen or Dodhees (Gawalas) or given to neighbouring poor
families.
4 - Cows were checked for general health and had to be free from diseases
and disability including, but not limited to udder, locomotion and vision problems.
The California mastitis test (CMT) was used to check for evidence of mastitis
(Radostits et al., 1994). A reagent dye and test paddles, manufactured by Bio vet
Kruuse Denmark, were used as an accurate and economical method of
determining cell count in milk as higher cell counts indicate mastitis. A small
amount of milk was squeezed out of each teat into the corresponding quarter of
the paddle; excess milk was poured out to leave just 2 ml. This was critically
checked for inconsistencies in colour, evidence of blood, mucus, clots etc. 3 ml
CMT reagent was then added to the milk. Change in colour and consistency for
positive mastitic milk varied from slight mucous light pink coloration to almost
jelly-like thickness with a deep purple colour. Exceptions were cows in first 3 days
of lactation as the colostrum gave a similar clot/ colour reaction as mastitic milk
but was consistent in all quarters as opposed to mastitis that tended to affect in
many cases individual quarters.
5 - The cows had to be between 3.5 to 7 years of age. This was estimated using
dentition as described by FAO (FAO, 2005). This proved useful and accurate and
was corroborated in few cases by cows coming from commercial farms that had
been branded with their year of birth.
6 - All cows were vaccinated against the endemic diseases, specified by the
Department of Animal Health and the project, by a qualified and authorised
professional and bore official vaccination certificates issued by the relevant
department. It was essential to do this before transportation to avoid outbreaks
of disease between the herds and transmission to new herds. Foot and Mouth
Disease FMD polyvalent oil adjuvant vaccines (Merial Animal Health Ltd.) by
Merialand Haemorrhagic Septicaemia HS mono-valent oil adjuvant vaccines

Observations on cattle dairy breeds in Pakistan

159

manufactured locally in Pakistan by the National Veterinary Research Institute

(NVRI) and the National Institute of Animal Biosciences (NIAB) were used.
For the purposes of the report analysis of the records was done using Epi
Info1 and charts and tables done in MS Excel or MS Word directly. In total records
from 2,109 lactating cows with their calves were analyzed.
Results and principal findings
A recent evaluation showed the animals distributed into PAK from Punjab
last year suffered no adverse effects as they easily adapted to the new environment.
The changes made vis a vis the project approach used in 2006 doubled milk
production and reduced calf mortalities among livestock distributed to
beneficiaries (ICRC, 2007).
Breed colouring
The Sahiwal breed of cattle are found in Punjab Province and are renowned
for their heat and tick resistance and have contributed in the formation of many

Figure 1 - Sahiwal cows at a validation

centre

synthetic crosses in the tropical regions of the world.

Their average milk production per lactation is about 1,200-1,800 liters with
4.5% butter fat. The age at first calving is more than 3.5 years and calving interval
ranges between 1.5 to 2 years.
Semen from selected Friesian and Jersey bulls raised locally is produced at
- Epi-info 1996 Centre for disease control, version 6.04d, Atlanta, USA and Geneva,
Switzerland

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Observations on cattle dairy breeds in Pakistan

Semen Production Units (SPU) at various Departments of Animal Husbandry

(DAH) centres in each Province and has been distributed in upgrading programs
for the last 15 years(Malik Sajjad Zaheer, 2003). As evidenced in several cows
some Jersey cross-breds produce the wild-type pigmentation and tended to
manifest only with the dark extremities (head, neck, feet and hindquarters) while
having various body colours but all their calves are consistently born with a

Figure 2 - Some Jersey cross cows

presented at the cow centres

reddish brown hue (Olson).

The Dhanni, Dajal and Rojhan are draught type breeds with milk production
potential of 800-1000 liters per lactation. Utility of these draught breeds has
declined over the years due to increased mechanization in agriculture. The
production recording and progeny testing program is being executed for the
Sahiwal breed only and is limited to institutional herds.
These local desi breeds showed remarked spotting patterns; Dhanni which is
predominantly white with small black body spotting, black ears and a black
muzzle, the Lohani with remarkable speckling throughout a brown body, and the
Rohjan that appears to have a recessive spotting pattern (Olson).
Productivity parameters
All cows were required to be in early lactation; this was done through visual
observation of the calf with special attention to remnants of the umbilical cord
and body size. It should be noted that the cows needed the calf to suckle and
stimulate milk let down before successful milking unlike in European breeds that
are machine milked and do not need a calf nearby. Some unscrupulous traders
artificially stimulate high milk production in cows by administering injections of

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Observations on cattle dairy breeds in Pakistan

Figure 3 - Pure Dhanni cow and

its calf

Figure 4 - Lohani breed of cattle

Figure 5 - Rohjani breed

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Observations on cattle dairy breeds in Pakistan

Figure 6 - Cholistani breed of cattle

Figure 7 - Dajal cross cows showing

distinct grey body coloration (these
cows also have characteristic bad
temperament of the Dajal).

Figure 8 - The Achai breed of

cattle displayed variation from the
reddish color found in Swat valley
to the pure black Gabrali Achai
and the black with white frilly hairs
on head and eyes found along the
Chinese border.

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Observations on cattle dairy breeds in Pakistan

Table 1 - Average body weight, milk production per day and efficiency index for each breed group

BREED
Sahiwal
Jersey

TOTAL

AVG. BODY

COWS

WEIGHT KGS

STD
DEV

1,252

304.7

42.1

335

295.2

42.8

AVG. MILK
PROD/

EFFICIENCY
STD
DEV

INDEX MILK
PROD/ BODY
WT

6.3

1.1

0.021

6.5

1.2

0.022

DAY LTR

Friesian

55

325.6

32.2

6.2

1.1

0.019

Achai

175

221.0

27.3

4.5

0.8

0.020

Cholistani

38

320.4

38.3

5.8

0.8

0.018

Dajal

51

308.3

42.7

6.0

0.9

0.019

Dhanni

79

315.7

40.1

5.6

0.8

0.018

Lohani

72

306.8

40.6

5.9

0.9

0.019

Rojhani

52

305.7

36.9

5.5

0.6

0.018

TOTAL

2,109

300.4

5.8

the hormone oxytocin but this is not long lived and soon declines.
From the data it is seen that 1,809 calves were aged 1 to 4 weeks, 260 aged
more than 4 up-to 8 weeks and only 40 calves older than 8 weeks. The older calves
were accepted exceptionally especially if the cow was a good milk producer
and/or the calf was female. The ratio of male to female calves was near natural,
54.7% to 45.3% respectively, which was a marked improvement by the suppliers
from the previous year. Coupled with the decreased calf mortalities and fewer
reports of dams rejecting the calves at the Distribution point in Pattika it can be
assumed that there was less of fostering and forced attachment of especially
orphan male calves to dry cows a common practice among dishonest livestock
traders.
As shown in the Table 1 the Achai breed was the smallest with an average of
221 kilograms (kgs) body weight followed by the Jersey crosses with 295 kgs. The
largest proved to be the Friesians at 326 kgs, the Cholistani at 320 kgs, Dhanni 315
kgs with the medium sizes being the Sahiwal, Rohjani, Lohani and Dajal with
average 304.7, 305.7, 306.8 and 308.3 kgs respectively.
An efficiency index (E.I) is developed when milk production is compared
against body weight. The Jersey crosses proved to be more efficient giving on
average 6.5 litres per day (E.I =0.022) followed by the Sahiwal with 6.3 litres (E.I
=0.021). The Achai is known to be better adapted to the high altitude areas, grazes

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Observations on cattle dairy breeds in Pakistan

freely and produces 4.5 litres per day (E.I =0.020) despite its small size.
The decision to drop the larger crosses from later selection criteria and
concentrate on Jersey, Sahiwal and Achai crosses is justified given the limited
natural feed resources and the mountainous terrain of many small farms in PAK.
Records of milk production were triangulated against age and plotted on an
extrapolated graph for each breed. From the figure below the milk production
increases from first calvers 3.5 years and peaks with cows on their third or 4th
lactation (6 years and above). Farmers tend to sell their cows once they have

Figure 9 - Derived milk production curves for each breed

reached this peak and these where the most available cows on the market.
Mastitis
There is no standard definition of various types of mastitis but is simplest to
consider mastitis as being either clinical or sub-clinical and symptoms may be
classified as acute or chronic in nature (Raza Syed Hassan, 2004).
Clinical Mastitis
It is normally characterized by inflammation (heat, pain, redness and swelling)

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Observations on cattle dairy breeds in Pakistan

of the udder. The udder secretion is usually abnormal; milk yield and quality are
usually markedly reduced. Several factors influence the severity of the effects e.g.
organism responsible, the susceptibility of the cow and the extent of udder
damage. As the few cases found would be difficult to treat in the short time the
cows spent at the validation centre these cases were rejected outright.
Sub-clinical Mastitis
Disease identification was made based on clinical examination, nature and
appearances of milk secretion, and reaction to California Mastitis Test (indirect
tests such as CMT, cell count or white side test are required to make the diagnosis).
A quarter infected with a pathogen, having an increase in the cell content of the
milk and the absence of clinical signs, is generally accepted as being affected with
sub-clinical mastitis. The level of cell count regarded as significant varies with
different workers, but counts in excess of 500,000 cells per ml are generally
regarded as indicative of sub clinical mastitis. This form of mastitis is frequently
not noticed by the farmer.
On the advice of the project veterinarian all cases of sub-clinical mastitis had
to be treated, by the animal health attendants provided by the supplier, with a
combination of Penicillin-Streptomycin injectable (Phenbiotic 5 gms) and intramammary infusions of Gentamicin (Gentamast 100mg) or long acting
Oxytetracyclines (Oxtra LA 20mg/ kg) and intrammamary infusions
(Rasomycin 426 mg). A third regime of homeopathic oral treatment Mastivet , with a composition of Bromium, Byronia, Chimaphila, Conium,
Hypersulphuris and Kali Iodide was also used.
In total 215 cows were treated for sub-clinical mastitis and recovered while 66
were diagnosed as having clinical mastitis and therefore rejected.
From the table 2 it can clearly be seen the mastitis cases tend to increase with
increased age of the cow with the prevalence of 15.26% mastitis in cows aged 6
years and above.
Table 2 - Prevalence of mastitis by age category
AGE GROUP
2.0 3.5 yrs
4 5.5 yrs
6 8 yrs
TOTAL

TOTAL
no. COWS
305
716
1'088
2'109

MASTITIS
SUB-CLINICAL CLINICAL
25
11
58
21
132
34
215
66

PREVALENCE
%
11.80
11.03
15.26

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Observations on cattle dairy breeds in Pakistan

Table 3 - Prevalence of mastitis cases by breed

BREED

TOTAL
COWS

Sahiwal
Jersey
Friesian
Achai
Cholistani
Dajal
Dhanni
Lohani
Rohjani
TOTAL

1'252
335
55
175
38
51
79
72
52
2'109

MASTITIS
CLINICAL
SUB-CLINICAL
150
40
27
7
5
4
5
0
6
0
7
4
5
8
8
2
2
1
215
66

PREVALENCE
%
15
10.1
16.4
2.9
15.8
21.6
16.5
13.9
5.8

Table 3 shows that prevalence of mastitis by breed. The prevalence is lowest

in the Achai (2.9%) that are raised in free grazing systems and highest in the Dajal
21.6% that is raised in semi-intensive systems with supplementary stall feeding.
The crosses had reduced prevalence probably due to better management on the
commercial farms where they are found. The majority had prevalence of 10
16% which compares to the average found in other studies. This substantiates
the findings that mastitis is spread through dirty environment and poor milking
techniques (dirty hands and containers).
From the results above all breeds of dairy cows are susceptible and no specific
prevalence related to breed. It is generally thought that high producers are more
commonly affected than poor producers. With succeeding lactations, the
likelihood to have contracted infection increases. That is, more cows on their third
or fourth calf than cows that just had their first calf are affected (Raza Syed
Hassan, 2004). Where poor hygiene exists, housed cows are at greater risk of
infection with environmental micro-organisms than cows on grassy pasture (Raza
Syed Hassan, 2004). The prevalence of clinical cases increases with confinement;
especially during the cold winter months.
With the treatment regime of Penicillin-Streptomycin injectable (Phenbiotic
5 gms) and intra-mammary infusions of Gentamicin (Gentamast 100mg) or
long acting oxytetracyclines (Oxtra LA 20mg/ kg) and intrammamary infusions
(Rasomycin 426 mg) it took about 3 days for the mastitis to clear while it took
only a day for the homeopathic treatment.
In terms of cost the first regime of the Phenbiotic 5 gms and a tube of
Gentamast cost 164 PKR, the second regime of a 100ml bottle Oxtra LA and

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167

Rasomycin tube cost 285 PKR while with the third regime of using a 240 ml
bottle of homeopathic treatment only cost 180 PKR.
Discussion
Cross breeding in cattle has been going on for the last three decades.
Production potential of the resultant crossbreds is much higher (may be double)
than that of the local dairy breeds (Malik Sajjad Zaheer, 2003). The Punjab
breeding policy seeks to maintain pure bred stocks of the Dhanni, Dajal and
Rojhan breeds is to keep them as purebreds and it prevents crossbreeding with any
other local or exotic breed. Crossing of non-descript cattle with exotic semen to
keep the exotic inheritance between 50 and 75% is recommended for their
optimum productivity.
Immunologists discovered the fact in the 1980s that female herbivores (cattle,
buffaloes) undergo lowered immune function twice during parturition; one
lowered at drying off due to the endocrine system and a second bigger dip 2
weeks before upto 3 weeks after calvings. Vaccinations and other stress should be
avoided around drying off and around freshening but unfortunately these 2
timeframes were unavoidable during this operation and as well are widely adopted
by many for vaccinations.
The losses caused to the dairy industry by mastitis are enormous. It is probable
that in some herds more than 15% of cows are rejected each year because of
mastitis.
Pakistan appears to have a high level of interest in homoeopathy. Last year, the
Pakistani Government established homoeopathic dispensaries and medicine
colleges that are operational throughout the country (Spranger, 2000).
Homeopathic treatment is a requirement for organic farmers willing to sell
milk to the EU; it entails an integrated system of preventive herd health,
complementary homeopathic therapy and limited antibiotic use. Savings are made
on the cost of therapy using homeopathic treatment and less milk lost because
unlike when antibiotics are used no withdrawal period is required (Klocke et al.,
2004).
In a nutshell the project shows that smallholder dairy farmer needs the
following technical services (Enemark and de Haan, 2007);
1- Animal health/veterinary services, both preventive (vaccinations, tsetse
control etc.) and curative (treatment of individual animals for diseases such as
wounds, udder infection, mastitis etc.);
2 - Improved breeding services through artificial insemination, or natural

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Observations on cattle dairy breeds in Pakistan

breeding; and
3- Agricultural technology advisory services on feeding, management, milk
hygiene, and farm economics.
Conclusion/significance
In the short term, the development of feed resources to raise ruminant
livestock productivity both in the lowlands and highland areas of Pakistan should
be based on better use of crops and crop residues (maize, wheat, grasses) and
improving feed utilization through the treatment of these by-product feeds (with
ammonia, urea) and diet supplementation with balanced high energy feeds,
(urea/molasses blocks, etc). The underlying strategy here should be based on
building on the existing system and introducing simple and practical technologies
to suit local conditions.
Predisposing causes of mastitis include the presence of chronically affected
carriers in the herd, the use of dirty methods of milking which transfers infectious
milk from animal to animal, and faulty milking techniques or machines which may
by excessive pulling and suction, cause damage (Raza Syed Hassan, 2004).
Improved stock of animals would render the dairy sector commercially viable.
Artificial insemination facilities should be made cheap hence affordable for
smallholder farmers (Ali Tanvir).
The Achai breed is better suited to mountainous areas and is much appreciated
by beneficiaries; proper sourcing should be taken into consideration as unlike the
larger Punjabi breeds these cows are rarely sold on the market in large numbers.
The dynamic seasonal multi-species grazing system is a complex and integrated
part of the agro-pastoral system where the households try to optimise the total
outcome taking into account vegetation phenology, species composition, stocking
density and other biotic and abiotic factors, as well as social and cultural factors
such as allocation of labor force in relation to seasonal demands, grazing rights,
tradition and social relations between households and villages(Hoffman, Abbas et
al., 1998).
Low productivity in agriculture is a major cause of poverty, food insecurity
and poor nutrition in low income developing countries like Pakistan( Ali
Muhammad Amjad et al., 2007). Support to dairy farming has proved an effective
tool for raising income of impoverished rural households and such interventions
could be the key for alleviating poverty in rural areas (Ali Tanvir). Biotechnology
in livestock production examples being artificial insemination, embryo transfer
and vaccine production can also help overcome production constraints.

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169

According to the FAO definition Sustainability is the management and

conservation of the natural resource base and the orientation of technological
and institutional change in such a manner as to ensure the attainment and
continued satisfaction of human needs for present and future generation. Such
sustainable development (in the agriculture, livestock, forestry and fisheries
sectors) conserves land, water, plant and animal genetic resources, is
environmentally non-degrading, technically appropriate, economically viable and
socially acceptable(Timon).
Some examples of future activities that could further enhance sustainability of
the dairy activities re-started by ICRC/ GRC in PAK thus far include:
- Booster FMD vaccinations and de-worming campaigns in beneficiary villages
through the DAH contracting the Community animal health Workers, voucher
systems to build a sustainable drug supply. It is important to link the CAHWS
to private vet pharmacies for re-supply,
- Itinerant training of livestock owners for further improved management
techniques for the improved breeds,
- Promote womens groups for milk collection, hygiene practises, marketing and
processing of milk to spur economic growth in the dairy sector. Relying on
subsidized milk, dairy products from locally produced milk have to compete
with products from recombined milk at prices that often do not cover the
cost price for milk produced locally (FAO, 2005).
- The breeding programme for the cows through natural breeding (bulls) or
artificial insemination (AI) needs to be strengthened so that the cows can
maintain productivity and as well as allowing the farmers recover faster
through getting replacement heifers (female calves) and ploughing oxen
(males) for agricultural activities. The most important criteria by which the
relevance of a breed improvement programme is determined is farmer
acceptability; i.e. do the changes brought about by the programme adequately
benefit the farmers, in terms of perceived market benefit, investment risk,
support service availability and general family welfare (Timon).
- Coordination between agencies and ex-post transactions with suppliers is
necessary to avoid encroachment by other relief agencies seeking to work and
do similar work examples being involvement of supplier in provision of goods
to different parties at the same time e.g. walnut trees, cows, contracting the
same CAHWS trained by ICRC/ GRC.
- Clientisation and trust between contracting Agency and suppliers is essential
to ensure that quantity and quality of livestock is supplied according to most
of the specifications outlined in this report.

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Observations on cattle dairy breeds in Pakistan

- Making Government and donor supported agricultural research and extension

services pro-poor and accessible to farmers is certainly a way forward for
dissemination of knowledge and new technologies (Government of Pakistan,
2003).
Acknowledgements
Special thanks go to the Red Cross National staff in Kashmir for the hard
work and dedication amid the havoc and misery wreaked upon their communities.
Thanks go also to the ICRC/ GRC management and the logistics, Wathab,
administration departmental staff that lent great support to the program.
Thanks to the contracted suppliers and their workers who, though they were
first and foremost businessmen, understood that they had to display levels of
professionalism in ensuring that the program achieved its goals. Last but not least
the Program is grateful to the Pakistan Government authorities represented by the
Departments of Animal Husbandry in Muzaffarabad (PAK), Lahore (Punjab)
and Peshawar (NWFP) and the line Ministry headquarters in Islamabad. They
granted a positive working environment, availed relevant information pertaining
to our activities and provided services regarding quality control.
Thanks also to the Regional Livestock specialist for providing valuable editorial
comment.
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