(ERGO) – Somali pastoralists in drought-hit central Somalia are resorting to leaves and tree bark as fodder to keep their animals alive, as the skies still show no sign of rain.
Seventy-year-old Elmi Ali Dahir, who lives in a remote area some 30km southeast of Guriel town in Galgadud region, has been feeding his remaining 70 goats with leaves from a local tree for several months.
The severe drought that swept across Somalia in 2016-17 killed most of his goats and he is determined to keep that last 70 a live, because his family’s lives depend on the animals.
Dahir told Radio Ergo that the leaves of the garas tree (also called dobera-glabra) that grow locally are all that is available.
He and other herders started feeding the leaves to his livestock when the deyr rains failed in part of the region.
“We have opted for this tree as a survival means for the livestock. I climb this tree and cut leaves for the goats. Before the drought, goats did not use to eat these tree leaves but now they have no alternative but to feed on it,” Dahir said.
Dobera glabra is an evergreen shrub native to Somalia, Djibouti, and Ethiopia.
Some herders are managing to buy grain for their livestock but Dahir cannot afford to do so.
His 10-member family depends on the goats as their only source of livelihood.
But since the goats are emaciated, Dahir has to look for other ways to put food on the table for his family.
“The goats are weak and cannot be sold or slaughtered, so at night I go and hunt dik-diks [small antelope] for supper. That is the way we survive. I do not know the urban life but there are some people who moved to towns after their livestock perished in the drought,” he explained.
Abdi Dahir Ali, another pastoralist living in Benya-ad village, 22km east of Guriel town, has a herd of 50 goats and 20 camels. For him, cooked millet works for his livestock, but the cost is prohibitive, and he cannot sustain this for much longer.
“I cook the millet because uncooked millet may cause stomachache for the animal. I feed the livestock with cooked millet once a day. I buy a 50kg bag of millet for $17 and that feeds 20 animals for five days,” said Ali.
Almost every livestock keeper in this region is trying out some instincts of survival for their animals, which are the last in line between their family’s life and death.
Maryan Abdi, 60, who has been living in the area for five decades, said she lost 450 goats to the 2016-17 drought.
“The remaining 50 goats feed on the bark of ‘Asal’ trees,” Maryan, who has 12 children, told Radio Ergo.
“I have no money so this is the only option. Initially, I used to feed the goats on grains, but I cannot afford that anymore.”
Asalis a species of the myrrh tree and is not normally eaten by animals.
Nuro Mohamed Hirsi, a pastoralist in Guriel, said her last remaining 60 goats and 10 camels fed on cooked maize and millet.
With a family of 25 depending on the livestock for their survival, Nuro has to struggle to keep the animals alive.
“We cook maize and millet for the livestock because there is nothing else to feed them. We are facing many challenges including severe water shortages,” she said.
