Food habits of horses, cattle, and sheep-goats and food supply in the forest–steppe zone of Mongolia: A case study in Mogod sum (county) in Bulgan aimag (province)

Livestock waste has a major influence on environmental pollution, if not managed properly, because it will cause a foul odor. Efforts to manage livestock waste have not been successfully carried out completely, so new innovations are needed by utilizing the Eisenia foetida as a reactor to process it into earthworm cultivation medium. Processing of livestock waste with earthworms can produce high economic value cocoon and biomass. To find out the differences in cocoon and biomass production in five types of livestock waste, a research was carried out using a Completely Randomized Design with five treatments and five replications. The results showed that the use of feces of cattle, goats, horses, broiler chickens, and rumen contents as the medium of Eisenia foetida cultivation had a significant effect (P<0.05) on cocoon and biomass production. Duncan's test results showed that the highest cocoon production of 123.0 eggs/nest box obtained on goat feces medium was significantly different (P<0.05) with feces of cattle, horses, chickens and rumen contents. The highest production of earthworm biomass of 1339.0 eggs/nest box obtained in horse feces medium was significantly different (P<0.05) with feces of cattle, goats, chickens, and rumen contents. The conclusion is: 1) to produce the most cocoon using goat feces; 2) to produce the most earthworm biomass using horse feces; 3) to produce the highest weight gain of earthworms using cattle feces; 4) to produce a weight size per head of earthworms using high rumen contents; and 5) the use of feces of broiler chickens is not recommended as a whole (100%) as a medium or feed in livestock waste treatment because it causes all earthworms to die, so they need to be mixed with other medium or feed ingredients.

The effect ofAphodius sphacelatus andA. ater activity in cattle faeces andSphaeridium bipustulatum in sheep and horse faeces on the discharge ofPilobolus sporangia was investigated under laboratory conditions. In five trials, the median number of sporangia produced was significantly less (P<0.01) in experimental chambers (with 1 or 2 beetles/g faeces) than in control chambers (without beetles). In addition, median percentage reduction of sporangia was significantly higher (P<0.01) forA. sphacelatus (80.9%) than forA. ater (56.9%) at 1 beetle/g cattle faeces.

To investigate the survival of Schistosoma japonicum eggs in goat feces in natural marshlands and the factors affecting its survival, so as to provide evidences for understanding of the role of eggs in goat feces in the transmission of schistosomiasis and the development of the interventions pertaining to disease control and elimination. The goat animals of schistosomiasis japonica were modeled in laboratory, and the feces of infected goat were collected. In laboratory, the effects of environmental temperature and water content in goat feces on egg hatching were evaluated, and in the field, the effect of duration of goat feces on marshland on egg hatching and the effect of direct sunshine on egg survival were evaluated. At 25°C in laboratory, the hatching rate of eggs in goat feces washigh-positively correlated with the water content in goat feces (r = 0.87). If the water content reduced to 7.6% in goat feces, the eggs in goat feces lost the ability to hatch. Under the same water content in goat feces, the hatching rate of eggs gradually decreased with the extension of the duration of exposure of goat feces to -5 °C, which reduced to 0 following 5 h exposure. At 5, 15 and 25 °C, the hatching rates of eggs gradually decreased with the extension of the duration of exposure of goat feces, and themiracidium hatching ratesof eggs were 2.3%, 5% and 0.9% respectively following the exposure for 52 d. At 35°C, the hatching rate of eggs gradually decreased with the extension of the duration of exposure, which reduced to 0 following 13 d exposure. In winter (-2-10 °C), the hatching rate of eggs gradually decreased with the extension of the duration of exposure of goat feces on marshlands, which reduced to 0 after 21 d of exposure, and in spring (16-19 °C), the hatching rate of eggs gradually decreased with the extension of the duration of exposure of goat feces on marshlands, which reduced to 0.9% after 5 d of exposure. At the same time point on the same marshland, the hatching rate of eggs in goat feces exposed to marshlands with direct sunshine was lower than that without direct sunshine. The survival of S. japonicum eggs in goat feces is associated with environmental temperature and water content (humidity) in goat feces, and the temperature and humidity are major natural factors affecting egg hatching.

Liquid organic fertilizer (LOF) has been increasingly practiced in organic vegetable production. Cattle feces, incubated with other organic materials, are generally used as a source of nutrients for LOF production. However, other animal feces are abundantly available and might substitute cattle feces. The experiment was established to determine the effects of four animal feces on nutrient contents of tithonia-enriched LOF and its effects on the fresh weight of loose-leaf lettuce. After five weeks of incubation, the nutrient contents of LOF were analyzed. A field experiment was further established to evaluate loose-leaf lettuce responses to all LOF types. Results indicated that pH, N-total, P, K, Mg, and Ca contents, except for C-organic, in all types of LOF did not significantly different. Both LOF of cattle and goat feces have similar C-organic contents (1.02 and 0.96%, respectively) and significantly higher than of chicken and buffalo feces (0.75 and 0.70%, respectively). All types of LOF had pH ranged from 6.66 to 6.97, N-total ranged from 1.09 to 1.26%, P ranged from 1.44 to 2.78%, K ranged from 0.57 to 0.61%, Mg-ex ranged from 0.01 to 0.02%, and Ca-ex ranged from 0.03 to 0.04%. This experiment suggested that the use of cattle feces for LOF production was only replaceable with goat feces. All types of LOFs produced similar lettuce fresh weight plot-1 with the order of buffalo, chicken, goat, and cattle-based LOFs. The fresh weight of loose-leaf lettuce produced with Buffalo-based LOF was 27.5% higher than those of cattle-based LOF.

SummaryAn equation predicting organic matter digestibility (OMD) of the diet from faecal crude protein content (FCP) was established by Lukas (2002) with data from cows fed various diets based on roughage of temperate origin. The suitability of this equation to predict OMD of tropical roughages was tested with data from grazing and stall-fed cattle, sheep and goats. The correlation between measured OMD and that estimated from the average FCP of a group of animals consuming the same diet was r=0.91, and the deviation between estimated and measured values averaged 6%. Poor estimates were obtained for feeds with high biological tannin activity. Using the equation provides an easy assessment of OMD of tropical roughages that do not contain biologically traceable amounts of anti-nutrients.

Zoonotic fecal pathogens and antimicrobial resistance in county fair animals

Objectives: The study aimed to search for E. coli O157 and non-O157 in milk, meat and faeces of cattle, sheep and pigs slaughtered in Cotonou. Methodology and Results: One hundred and Seventy-Five (175) samples including 25 meat, 25 faeces per species and 25 milk from cattle were analysed for E. coli O157; O26 and O111 and the virulence genes were identified by PCR. The SAS software (1998) and the bilateral Z test were used to calculate and compare the identification frequencies. E. coli O157 was identified in 4% of cattle faeces, 4% of sheep faeces, and 20% of beef and, in 20% of milk samples. E. coli O26 was identified in 12% of cattle faeces and, in 8% of beef samples. E. coli O111 was identified at frequencies of 8%, and 12% in faeces of sheep and pigs, respectively. The eae gene was detected in 4% of beef, ovine meat, milk, pig faeces and in sheep faeces. stx1 was detected in 8% of milk, and in 4% of bovine and sheep faeces. The strains possessing the gene were all of E. coli O157 with the exception of one from pig faeces identified as O111. Conclusions and application of findings: The presence of these serogroups of E. coli with virulence genes poses a real food safety problem in Benin. This study findings must be taken into account for risk assessment and management related to the consumption of food of animal origin. Keywords: Benin, E. coli O157, O26, O111, faeces, meat, milk

Escherichia coli O157:H7 is a human pathogen associated with haemolytic uraemic syndrome and haemorrhagic colitis cases throughout the developed world (Garcia and others 2010). The faeces of ruminant animals, in...

Risk of Escherichia coli 0157:H7, Non-0157 Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli, and Campylobacter spp. in Food Animals and Their Products in Qatar

The increase of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in zoonotic pathogens poses a substantial threat to both animal production and human health. Although large-scale animal farms are acknowledged as major reservoirs for AMR, there is a notable knowledge gap concerning AMR in small-scale farms. This study seeks to address this gap by collecting and analyzing 137 fecal samples from goat and sheep farms in Tennessee and Georgia. Bacteria were identified using culture-dependent methods and polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) was performed using the Kirby-Bauer Disk Diffusion method. The prevalence of E. coli (94.9%) in goats and sheep significantly exceeded (p < 0.05) that of S. aureus (81.0%), Shigella (35.0%), S. saprophyticus, and Salmonella (3.0%). Salmonella occurrence in goat feces (2.2%) was higher than in sheep (0.8%). Notably, 27% of goats and 8% of sheep tested positive for Shigella spp., while 60% of goats and 21% of sheep tested positive for S. aureus. Antibiotic resistance was observed primarily against ampicillin (79.4%), vancomycin (65.1%), and gentamycin (63.6%), significantly surpassing (p < 0.05) resistance to tetracycline (41.6%) and imipenem (21.8%). The penicillin (79.4%), glycopeptide (65.1%), and aminoglycoside (63.6%) antibiotic classes displayed significantly higher (p < 0.05) resistance compared to tetracyclines (45.7%) and carbapenem (21.8%). Our findings suggest that goats and sheep feces may serve as source for multidrug-resistant bacteria, raising concerns about the potential introduction of their fecal matter into soil, water, and eventually to the food chain. This highlights the need for proactive measures to address and mitigate AMR in goats and sheep within small-scale farms.

Diagnosis of gastrointestinal nematodes relies predominantly on coproscopic methods such as flotation, Kato-Katz, McMaster or FLOTAC. Although FLOTAC allows accurate quantification, many nematode eggs can only be differentiated to genus or family level. Several molecular diagnostic tools discriminating closely related species suffer from high costs for DNA isolation from feces and limited sensitivity since most kits use only small amounts of feces (<1 g). A direct PCR from crude egg preparations was designed for full compatibility with FLOTAC to accurately quantify eggs per gram feces (epg) and determine species composition. Eggs were recovered from the flotation solution and concentrated by sieving. Lysis was achieved by repeated boiling and freezing cycles – only Trichuris eggs required additional mechanic disruption. Egg lysates were directly used as template for PCR with Phusion DNA polymerase which is particularly resistant to PCR inhibitors. Qualitative results were obtained with feces of goats, cattle, horses, swine, cats, dogs and mice. The finally established protocol was also compatible with quantitative real-time PCR in the presence of EvaGreen and no PCR inhibition was detectable when extracts were diluted at least fourfold. Sensitivity was comparable to DNA isolation protocols and spiked samples with five epg were reliably detected. For Toxocara cati a detection limit below one epg was demonstrated. It was possible to distinguish T. cati and Toxocara canis using high resolution melt (HRM) analysis, a rapid tool for species identification. In human samples, restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) and HRM analysis were used to discriminate Necator americanus and Ancylostoma duodenale. The method is able to significantly improve molecular diagnosis of gastrointestinal nematodes by increasing speed and sensitivity while decreasing overall costs. For identification of species or resistance alleles, analysis of PCR products with many different post PCR methods can be used such as RFLP, reverse-line-blot, Sanger sequencing and HRM.

Ultracentrifuged faeces from a variety of species of domestic animals with diarrhoea were examined by electron microscopy. Rotaviruses were detected in faeces of cattle, pigs and horses from neonates to 6 months of age. Infections were most common in the early post-natal period. Rotavirus infection was usually associated with a history of recurrent outbreaks of severe diarrhoea that was unresponsive to conventional antibacterial and symptomatic treatment. Coronaviruses were found in faeces of cattle, sheep, deer and horse, and were associated with sudden out-breaks of profuse, watery diarrhoea. A wide range of ages were represented in the infected group. Direct electron microscopy and immune-electron microscopy of faeces clarified by centrifugation in a microhaematocrit centrifuge, proved to be useful ancillary techniques of examination.

Objetivo do presente estudo foi avaliar a concentração da fibra em detergente neutro indigestível (FDNi) após a incubação ruminal em bovinos, caprinos e ovinos, e comparar os diferentes resultados com os métodos de estimativa e relacionar os dados com as análises químicas. Quatros forragens (silagem de milho, cana-de-açúcar, Brachiaria decumbens cv. Marandu e Panicum maximum cv. Tanzânia) dois concentrados (milho em grão e farelo de soja), um subproduto (casquinha de soja) e três amostras de fezes (bovino, caprino e ovino) foram incubadas em novilhos Nelore, cabras Saanen e ovinos Santa Inês. Os animais foram previamente adaptados a dieta experimental por 8 dias e incubação ocorreu por 240 horas. A concentração de FDNi foi mais alta nas amostras incubadas no rúmen de caprinos comparada com amostras incubadas no rúmen de bovinos. A incubação nos ovinos aumentou a concentração de FDNi nas forragens e tendeu a aumentar no concentrado e subproduto em relação a incubação no rúmen de bovinos. A concentração de FDNi foi similar para incubação em ovinos e caprinos. Em adição, as fezes bovinas tiveram alta concentração de FDNi, e as fezes de caprinos tiveram menor concentração de FDNi em relação às fezes de ovinos. O modelo CNCPS subestimou a concentração de FDNi nas amostras. Estimativas da FDN não degradável por Conrad et al. (1984) subestimou a concentração de FDNi na cana-de-açúcar e superestimou a concentração de FDNi no P.maximume concentrados. Em geral, a concentração de lignina foi ocomponente das amostrasmais relacionado com a concentração de FDNi. FDA foi a melhor para forragens (R2 = 0.668) e FDN foi melhor para concentrados (R2 = 0.454). Em conclusão, os processos digestivos das diferentes espécies afetam a concentração de FDNi do alimento. Erros nas estimativas dos modelos foram consideráveis e as características dos alimentos afetam a composição química e concentração de FDNi.

BackgroundListeriosis is a global health threat to both animals and humans, especially in developing countries. This study was designed to isolate Listeria monocytogenes from faeces; environmental samples; and cow, sheep and goat milk, as well as human stool, to study its molecular characteristics and antibiotic sensitivity in the New Valley and Beheira Governorates, Egypt. The isolation and identification of L. monocytogenes were carried out using traditional culture and biochemical methods, followed by antibiography, genus confirmation of some isolates and detection and sequencing of InlB genes via PCR.ResultsOut of 2097 examined samples, the prevalence of L. monocytogenes was 13.4% in animals; the prevalence was 9.2%, 2.4%, 25.4%, 4%, 42.4%, and 6.4% in cattle faeces, cattle milk, sheep faeces, sheep milk, goat faeces, and goat milk, respectively. However, the prevalence of L. monocytogenes was 8.3% in human samples. Both animal and human isolates showed 100% resistance to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, and the isolates showed the highest sensitivity to flumequine (100%), amikacin (99.2%), gentamicin (97.6%), and levofloxacin (94.6%). Multidrug resistance (MDR) was detected in 86.9% of the tested isolates. The 16 S rRNA and inlB genes were detected in 100% of the randomly selected L. monocytogenes isolates. Phylogenetic analysis of three isolates based on the inlB gene showed 100% identity between faecal, milk and human stool isolates.ConclusionsFaeces and milk are major sources of listeriosis, and the high degree of genetic similarity between animal and human isolates suggests the possibility of zoonotic circulation. The high prevalence of MDR L. monocytogenes in both animal and human samples could negatively impact the success of prevention and treatments for animal and human diseases, thereby imposing serious risks to public health.

BackgroundBovine enteroviruses (BEV) are members of the genus Enterovirus in the family Picornaviridae. They are predominantly isolated from cattle feces, but also are detected in feces of other animals, including goats and deer. These viruses are found in apparently healthy animals, as well as in animals with clinical signs and several studies reported recently suggest a potential role of BEV in causing disease in animals. In this study, we surveyed the presence of BEV in domestic and wild animals in Thailand, and assessed their genetic variability.MethodsViral RNA was extracted from fecal samples of cattle, domestic goats, Indian bison (gaurs), and deer. The 5’ untranslated region (5’UTR) was amplified by nested reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) with primers specific to BEV 5’UTR. PCR products were sequenced and analyzed phylogenetically using the neighbor-joining algorithm to observe genetic variations in regions of the bovine and bovine-like enteroviral 5’UTR found in this study.ResultsBEV and BEV-like sequences were detected in the fecal samples of cattle (40/60, 67 %), gaurs (3/30, 10 %), and goats (11/46, 24 %). Phylogenetic analyses of the partial 5’UTR sequences indicated that different BEV variants (both EV-E and EV-F species) co-circulated in the domestic cattle, whereas the sequences from gaurs and goats clustered according to the animal species, suggesting that these viruses are host species-specific.ConclusionsVarieties of BEV and BEV-like 5’UTR sequences were detected in fecal samples from both domestic and wild animals. To our knowledge, this is the first report of the genetic variability of BEV in Thailand.