Cyclical Preponderance of Gastrointestinal Parasites and their impact on Small ruminants around Gwalior (Madhya Pradesh) India

Abstract

In India, the Livestock sector plays an important role in the economy and is one of the most potential sub-sectors of agriculture which plays a necessary role in promoting human health and most particularly in central India, Small ruminants like (sheep and goat) constitute the major portion of livestock. Gwalior is considered as a Semi-Central Zone where different tribes particularly Gujjar’s and Bakerwals had made cattle rearing as their professional business. The production and productivity of small ruminants in Gwalior state are greatly hindered by various diseases including gastro-intestinal parasitic infection which is caused due to improper care, unhygienic environmental conditions, harsh and hot climatic setup, and close contact with other infected animals. Gastrointestinal parasitism is a global problem. Therefore, a one-year-long epizootic survey was conducted to study the prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites and their various species present in small ruminants (goats/sheep) in the Gwalior region. From January 2019 to January 2020, a total of 338 faecal samples from goats of different locations in Gwalior (MP) India were examined to confirm the presence of parasites and gastrointestinal parasitic infections. Majority of the samples were found positive for endoparasites and goats were also detected positive for gastrointestinal parasites. In Goat, the overall incidence of Haemonchus, Coccidia, Trichuris, Nematodirus, and Fasciola were 47.6%, 36.5%, 39.6% respectively. The occurrence of Nematodirus and Fasciola (20.9%, 2.32%) has been observed in sheep only.