Livestock healthcare for Tibetan agro-pastoralists: application of rapid rural appraisal techniques

A rapid appraisal (RA) was conducted with Tibetan agro-pastoralists of the Himalayas with the aim of obtaining an understanding of the primary livestock healthcare system and local knowledge of livestock diseases and healing. Various methods were used, including key informant interviews, individual interviews and livestock disease ranking. These techniques were found to be particularly useful for gathering information with a socio-cultural grounding, in a context where religious beliefs and livestock healthcare are inextricably linked.