RESUMO
Aim: To study the impact of training given to female farmers under the poultry extension women worker on the status of rural chicken production in Islamabad/Rawalpindi area. Study Design: The data were analyzed using General Linear Model procedures. The statistical model was constructed to ascertain the effect of breeds, season, health coverage program and training received by female farmers on egg production and mortality in chicks. Place and Duration of Study: Poultry Research Institute, Murree Road, Shamsabad, Rawalpindi, Pakistan, between July 2011 and June 2012 Methodology: The study contained data collection (prior to and after getting training in rural chicken production over a one year period) from 100 female farmers who were willing to join female farmers groups and get training from extension workers. These one hundred female farmers were primarily selected from 150 farmers at random, keeping in view their zeal for joining female farmer groups. The training included skill development, production, and breeding of highly productive stock, care of the newly hatched chicks, housing, feeding, disease prevention, and hygienic measures, control of external and internal parasites, egg selection and storage, hatchability of eggs, and its requirements, selection and culling of birds, vaccination schedule. Results: Significantly lower flock size was maintained by female farmers before getting training (12.4 numbers) than after training (23.44 numbers). Egg production, per bird, was significantly lower prior to training (37.7 eggs) than after training (75.2 eggs). A significantly higher number of eggs per capita per year were available for farmers after training (140 eggs) than before training (87 eggs). However, per capita egg consumption was not improved by training. Mean overall mortality per flock were significantly higher before training (45.5%) than after training (13.5%). Eggs were stored for a longer duration in summer (6.80) and winter (15 days) for hatching prior to training than after training (4.09 and 7.75 days, respectively). A significantly higher number of eggs (18.0 eggs) were set under a broody hen before training than after training (12.6 eggs). Hatchability per number of eggs set was significantly lower before training (59.0%) than after training (75.5%). Ninety percent female farmers were adopted vaccination practice, whereas, 21.0 percent female farmers were already vaccinating their birds prior to training. Conclusion: Training significantly improved rural chicken production by female farmers. Overall training improved the poultry production practices through better adaptation of new techniques by female farmers. Most of female farmers adopted vaccination schedule after training.