Socio-Economic Status and Flock Management Practices of Sheep Farmers in Telangana Region of Andhra Pradesh

A study on socio-economic status of sheep farmer and flock management practices of sheep in Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh was carried out in 576 households in 96 villages in Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh. The study revealed that the mean age group of sheep farmer was 42.69 years and majority (70.31%) of the respondents belonged to middle age and illiterate category (74.65%). Majority (77.26%) of the sheep farmers had agriculture as their main occupation and the average sheep farming experience of 29.14 years. The study revealed that 71.53% possessed medium family size with overall mean land holding of 2.47±0.09 acres. Majority (45.66%) were marginal farmers and generated mean annual income ≤54957. About 42.88% of farmers possessed 50-100 sheep with mean flock size of 113.50±2.7 under field condition. In the study area, majority (59.03%) of sheep farmers followed the combination of stationary and migratory type of sheep rearing.