COMING: NEW-AGE GOBAR

COW dung, also called gobar, could soon come through potty-trained cows. 

Several developed countries are looking at potty-training cows as one means to reducing methane, which are harmful to the environment. 

If the revolutionary plan takes effect, it could eventually become a feature of the local livestock community. 

Cows defecate up to 100 pounds of waste and eight gallons of urine each day. 

The waste is a source of powerful greenhouse gases, and is adding to global warming, scientists say. 

So, how are cows being potty-trained? 

Cows are encouraged to use toilets through various gifts and other ploys. 

The scientists said results so far have shown that calves performed at a similar level to children while learning to potty train. 

The experts feel that over a period of time cows would become potty trained and would eventually reduce the amount of harmful gases. 

As for gobar, it is in less demand in Trinidad and Tobago because it is now seldom used to lepay (plaster) dirt floors, as was popularly done at humble homes in past generations. 

But it is sold in India and elsewhere for religious purposes, with prices set according to the texture of the waste. 

In India, doctors had to caution the population against the use of cow dung as a treatment for the deadly Covid-19 virus. 

As hospital beds became scarce during the height of the pandemic, many people opted for dung-based treatments. 

Some people rubbed a mixture of cow dung and urine on their bodies. 

They gathered at large cow sheds to perform the procedure. 

Doctors warned that a variety of diseases and infections could be transmitted through that ritual.