Five young scientists in the Tropentag 2012’s oral presentation on animal breeding and health focused their empirical research in East Africa. On animal breeding and genetic resources Samuel Mbuku identified management strategies for small ruminants among pastoralists in Semi-Arid Kenya in order to optimize and expand the existing community based breeding programs in the country. Similarly in Kenya, T.O Okeno proposed an alternative breeding program of indigenous chicken that is more economically viable for smallholder chicken breeders. Moreover, Charles Moses Lyimo assessed the genetic diversity of five Tanzanian chicken populations and traced their history. On animal health and veterinary services Anne Fischer traced the origin of “Mycoplasma mycoides cluster”, a pathogen or parasite that attacks and causes diseases to goats, sheep and cattle particularly in East Africa. She argued that a comprehensive overview of the evolutionary history of the said cluster is still missing and genetic relationships between populations is still lacking. Meanwhile, John Ilukor analyzed the animal health service delivery in Uganda and proposed specific government interventions to improve their services.