Big savings in the house

No worries about the foot and mouth disease

Dinh Thi Phuong Thuy, Vice Chairman of Na Hoi Commune People's Committee, said that since the beginning of the year, the commune has been active in communication work and mobilized people to perform disease prevention and control for livestock and poultry in preparation for the cold season.

Na Hoi is the commune with the largest number of horses in Bac Ha district with 480 horses of all kinds. Horses not only help households develop their family economy but also help the commune take the lead in cultural and sports activities, notably the traditional Bac Ha horse racing tournament.

The commune used to raise breeding horses according to the 30A support program. From the initial parents, the people developed a herd of breeding horses and trained horses that specialized in carrying corn and rice from high mountains and hills back home. Now the roads are concreted to the alleys and there are plows and harrows using gasoline and diesel engines, so people sell some horses and focus on raising racing horses and some mares.

Lu A Dao lives in Xin Chai village. As his family's accumulated capital was not enough, he borrowed more money from the bank to expand his horse herd. His family currently has 7 horses. Every day, apart from letting the horses out, the family plants elephant grass for the horses to eat and cooks bran to help the horses increase their resistance in winter. "Only when the price is right or there is a special occasion in the family will I sell the horse. The meat is used to cook thang co and the bones are used to make bone extracts. We consider it as a saving in the house," Dao said.

When it comes to raising horses, people do not have to invest much, only the initial investment for the breed animals. One thing to note is that horses do not suffer from foot and mouth disease like buffaloes, cows, or pigs.

Preferential loans to develop horse herds

Lung Van Hoan in Xin Chai village, Na Hoi commune (Bac Ha district, Lao Cai) said, "Previously, my family borrowed VND 50 million from the Mommune Farmer’s Union to buy 2 horses. I just sold one 2 months ago to get money for medical treatment. I sold that horse for VND 24 million. As for the other horse, I expect to earn more than VND 30 million. However, this horse is pregnant so I will wait to get the stallion. Only when the horse gives birth can we calculate the whole profits, around June of the following year. It is still a big win for me."

In Bac Ha, horses now become the main source of income. Many households have invested in grass choppers instead of manually chopping grass as before to reduce care costs. When raising horses, they also have manure for their corn fields, thus saving a bit more money on fertilizer. Some households in Na Hoi commune even boldly switch to raising white horses to earn higher income.

Replicate the model of breeding horses

Nguyen Van Linh, Chairman of Na Hoi Commune Farmer's Union, said that Bac Ha district annually organizes the traditional Bac Ha horse racing tournament, attracting many tourists. Na Hoi is also famous for having many horse jockeys which win high prizes at horse racing tournaments in Sa Pa.

However, recently the State has increasingly invested in rural concrete roads, so the business of horse-drawn carts transporting food from the hills and fields is no longer the same as before, causing the number of horses to decrease.

Implementing Resolution 10 dated August 26, 2021 of the provincial Party Standing Committee on the Strategy to develop commodity agriculture in Lao Cai, Na Hoi commune is selected as a key commune for the development of livestock farming.

“Having received support from the Party Committee, People's Committee and the Farmer's Union of Bac Ha district, the commune Farmer's Union has consulted the Party Committee and People's Committee to access the capital source of Bac Ha district's farmer support fund with the source capital of VND 500 million.

“We have disbursed 10 households a loan of VND 50 million each to develop the horse herd and a model for breeding horses. The 10 households bought 23 horses, both mother and child, white horses and black horses. Up to now, through the preliminary assessment of the commune and district Farmer's Union, the horse herd has basically developed and grown well, bringing stable income to the people," said Chairman Nguyen Van Linh.