In addition to supplying milk, meat, eggs, wool, their castings (dung) and hides, animals, mainly bullocks, are the major source of power for both farmers and drayers.

Thus, animal husbandry plays an important role in the rural economy.

The national gross value of output from this sector was 8,123 billion Rupees in FY 2015–16.

It was established under The Maharashtra Animal and Fishery Sciences University Act, 1998.

[5] It was officially established on 3 December 2000 by carving seven colleges out of the other four state agriculture universities in Maharashtra.