SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH FARM LEVEL TECHNOLOGY IN CARABAO RAISING

Abstract

The study dealt with the general characteristics of the respondents, existing management practices employed, some socio-economic factors associated with carabao raising, and the gap between the recommended and existing management practices in carabao raising in Iloilo, Bohol and Leyte.
Generally, the respondents were farmers in their late forties, predominantly male, mostly married and fifth graders who were engaged in carabao raising for more than 20 years. Rice-, corn, coconut-, sugarcane, rootcrop and vegetable-based farming systems were practised in the three locations with rice-based farming as the most widely used.
Most of the carabaos raised were intended primarily for draft purposes. The native strain was the most predominant among the breeds raised. Several management practices such as tethering, wallowing, feeding soilage, confining, castration, breeding and training for draft were employed.
Adoption of recommended practices was associated with tribe, number of persons involved, beliefs, years in carabao raising, peace and order condition, number of animals raised, gross income, distance to market, types of road, and number of animal days.