The effectiveness of buffalo breeding in Trieu Dai

Grasping the increasing demand for buffalo meat in the market, Mr. Tran Dinh Coi's family in Quang Dien village, Trieu Dai commune, Trieu Phong district has taken advantage of the potential and advantages of the locality to invest in breeding buffalo. From practical experience along with the desire to learn, actively update and apply new techniques in breeding, he has successfully built this model.

Every day, Mr. Coi lets his buffalo out into the fields to eat fresh grass - Photo: NT

Born into a farming family, from his childhood, Mr. Coi was attached to the image of fields and buffaloes diligently helping farmers plow and harrow, contributing to bumper crops. Over time, the development of agricultural mechanization gradually replaced the pulling power of buffaloes, but his family still maintained raising this type of livestock. This was also the condition for him to effectively raise buffaloes for reproduction.

In 2014, he realized that the Thang Quang land in Quang Dien village was abandoned, so he rented about 7 hectares and planned 4 hectares for rice fields, the remaining area was used to grow grass to raise buffaloes. At first, his family raised 2 female buffaloes for breeding.

Normally, female buffalo raised using traditional grazing methods take 2-3 years to give birth to a litter. To raise them properly and more effectively, he was determined to research and learn about breeding buffaloes on TV, in books and newspapers, and from experienced people to master the techniques and characteristics of breeding buffaloes.

According to Mr. Coi, to raise buffaloes effectively, food sources need to be diverse, such as fresh grass, dry straw, etc. In the summer, the buffaloes must be bathed regularly. Every day, he lets the buffaloes out into the fields to exercise and eat fresh grass.

The barn must be built to ensure dryness and ventilation. Raising female buffaloes for reproduction according to proper techniques will result in 2 litters every 3 years. Although the initial investment capital for this breeding model is high, in return, raising buffaloes for reproduction has little risk and can take advantage of straw and agricultural by-products, so the profit is much higher than other livestock.

To date, Mr. Coi's family has nearly 30 buffaloes, including 20 mother buffaloes, 8 calves and 1 bull buffalo. Thanks to breeding buffaloes, on average each year, Mr. Coi's family sells 6-8 calves, each priced at 10-12 million VND. In addition, he also sells meat buffaloes for the male buffaloes that are not used for breeding.

The market for buffalo consumption is quite favorable, customers are not only in the province but also in neighboring provinces such as Thua Thien Hue, Quang Binh, Ha Tinh ... Along with growing rice, crops, and raising buffalo, each year his family earns about 140 million VND. "Compared to raising cows, chickens, and pigs, buffaloes reproduce easier, especially in terms of care and techniques, and sell at a good price. In the near future, my family plans to expand the scale of breeding buffaloes to increase income."

Chairman of the Farmers' Association of Trieu Dai Commune, Le Quang Nguyen, said: "Currently, there are many livestock models in the commune, however, with the model of raising buffalo for reproduction, only Mr. Coi's family has invested a lot and developed well, which is a new direction in the field of livestock, affirming the innovation of thinking in developing the family economy .

From this model, the association takes it as a point to mobilize farmer members in the commune to actively learn, research, and convert appropriate crop and livestock structures, helping people increase their income and strive to become rich legitimately.

Ngoc Trang

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