Abstract
A cross-sectional study was undertaken to determine the prevalence and intensity of gastrointestinal parasites in pigs from the Teaching and Research Farm of the University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. Faecal samples were collected randomly from 271 pigs between April and October 2010, processed by modified Kato-katz technique and then examined for the presence of helminth ova and protozoan oocysts and cysts. Out of the 271 faecal samples examined, 97 (35.8%) were infected with one or more parasite species. Five types of parasites were identified, including Trichuris suis, Ascaris suum, human hookworm, Stephanurus dentatus and Isospora suis. T. suis was the most prevalent parasite. The prevalence of intestinal parasites was significantly higher in male pigs than in females (P<0.05). Single infection was more common with a prevalence of 80.4%. The results of this study provide baseline information about the parasitic fauna in intensively managed pigs in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. Key words: Prevalence, gastrointestinal parasites, Ascaris suum, pig, Trichuris suis, Ibadan.
Highlights
In swine industry, the sustainable development of this sector is faced with a number of constraints, prominent among which is the disease is caused by intestinal parasites
Five types of gastrointestinal parasites were identified, comprising four nematodes and one protozoan. These included T. suis having a prevalence of 12.2%, followed by A. suum with a prevalence of 11.1%, while human hookworm had a prevalence of 5.9%
This study revealed that the overall prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites recorded among 271 pigs from the Teaching and Research Farm in Ibadan was 38.8%
Summary
The sustainable development of this sector is faced with a number of constraints, prominent among which is the disease is caused by intestinal parasites. Gastrointestinal parasites are responsible for substantial loss of productivity in swine and other livestock industry. They constitute a major impediment to efficient and profitable livestock production (Boes et al, 2000; Joachim et al, 2001). In Nigeria, livestock production sector is vital because of its economical benefits but because over 80% of the population are involved in one way or the other in Agriculture (Otuma and Udenwa, 2009). Several studies on gastrointestinal parasites affecting pigs have been undertaken in Nigeria and other parts of the world. In a study conducted among 383 pigs for parasitic infection in Eastern Centre Province, Burkina
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