Abstract
A cross-sectional study to determine the prevalence of bovine trypanosomosis was carried out in Chena district, Kefa zone, southwest Ethiopia from September 2010 to January 2011. Blood samples were collected from 391 randomly selected local (zebu) breed cattle in three representative peasant associations (PAs). The buffy coat and Giemsa stained thin blood films examination techniques were used for parasite detection and identification. The packed cell volume (PCV) estimation was also conducted. From a total of 391 cattle, 6.9% (n = 27) of the animals were found positive for trypanosome infection. The trypanosome species observed across the study animals were T. congolense (4.89%), T. vivax (1.54%), and T. b. brucei (0.51%) as single infections. The infection rate of T. congolense and T. b. brucei varied significantly (P 0.05) in infection rate was found between male (7.79%) and female (5.62%) animals. The prevalence was 2.24% and 8.29% in young and adult cattle, respectively with significant difference (P < 0.05) between them. The prevalence rate in good, medium and poor body conditioned animals were 7.28%, 0.78% and 13.39%, respectively with a statistical significant difference (P < 0.05) among them. The mean PCV of the infected animals (17.56%) appeared significantly (P < 0.05) lower than the non-infected (25.4%). Even if, the present study indicated a low prevalence of bovine trypanosomosis in the study areas, its impact on production and potential transmission to others should not be neglected.
Highlights
Domestic livestock in Africa are important as a source of protein to humans, animal traction, income and investment and manure for enhancing agricultural production [1]
Bovine trypanosomosis and its vectors (Glossina species) occur in vast areas of the sub-Saharan Africa with devastating impact on livestock productivity posing a serious threat to the lives and livelihood of entire communities and constitute the greatest single constraint to livestock and crop production thereby directly contributing to hunger, poverty, protein malnutrition and suffering of entire communities in Africa [5]
Africa looses over 3 million cattle and other domestic livestock through deaths caused by trypanosomosis every year [1]
Summary
Domestic livestock in Africa are important as a source of protein (milk and meat) to humans, animal traction, income (hides) and investment (social security) and manure for enhancing agricultural (crop) production [1]. An important protozoan disease caused by the genus Trypanosoma is transmitted through bites by different species of Glossina and mechanically by a number of biting flies such as Tabanus and Stomoxys spp. The effect of trypanosomosis is the direct losses and due to the indirect losses, which includes exclusion of livestock and animal power based on crop production in the overall stocked and degraded high lands as consequences of imbalance land use brought about the presence of tsetse flies and the disease trypnosomosis in low land [7]
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