Economic Evaluation of Small ruminant Production among Small holder Farmers in Zamfara State

A survey was conducted in three Local Government Areas of Zamfara State to study the economic advantages of keeping small ruminants among smallholder farmers.. A total of 120 smallholder farmers were randomly selected for the study and each of them was verbally interviewed using structured questionnaires. Result from the statistical analysis shows that the highest average farm size of 1.97 ±0.180ha was observed in Maradun. The highest average crop income was N 85548±11735.The highest average livestock income was N100733±11858. Increasing livestock number by one animal was predicted to increase livestock income by N 1126. Increasing the crop yield by one bag was predicted to increase the livestock income by N1657. The gross margin of livestock was higher (N51260) than that of crops (N 44,110) in all locations. Length of hind legs of Uda sheep was found to significantly correlate with the height at withers (r = 0.954; p that small ruminant production is a profitable venture among smallholder farmers in Zamfara state and should therefore be encouraged for sustainable livelihoods in Zamfara state.