Abstract
Ingestion of indigestible foreign bodies in cattle is a pathological condition of both economic and health importance. It is has mostly been reported in association with feed scarcity. The aim of this study was to investigate the occurrence and nature of indigestible foreign materials in abattoir fore-stomach specimens in Ngoma district, Rwanda. Each chamber was opened by incision, then given a thorough macroscopic examination by visual inspection and palpation for the presence of foreign materials. The results show that there is an overall occurrence of 17.4% foreign bodies in cattle. The highest occurrence (25.3%) was recorded in June (the driest month). Results further show that the majority of the foreign bodies were plastics (65.0%). More foreign bodies (29.5%) were found in older animals (5 years and above) than in younger and middle-aged animals (16.5 % and 6.0%, respectively). There was a higher prevalence of foreign bodies in female cattle (20.0%) than in males (15.7%). The presence of cassette tape, as observed in the study, has not been reported elsewhere. The high representation of plastics in animals (65.5%) in the light of a government plastic bag ban in supermarkets presents a major challenge to livestock production in Rwanda. What is disturbing is that it is not known if this problem is increasing or decreasing as there are no previous studies for comparison. However, the results will serve as a reference point for future studies to understand the true trend and true burden of plastic bags in livestock.
Highlights
Ingestion of foreign bodies in cattle is a pathological condition of economic importance which leads to severe economic losses as a result of high morbidity and mortality rates (Radostits et al 2007; Ramin et al 2008)
The most commonly-observed foreign material was plastic, which occurred in 65.5% (n = 220) of those with foreign bodies in their stomachs
This study revealed an overall occurrence of 17.4% of foreign bodies, which consisted mainly of plastics, in the stomachs of cattle slaughtered at Ngoma slaughterhouse in the Eastern province
Summary
Ingestion of foreign bodies in cattle is a pathological condition of economic importance which leads to severe economic losses as a result of high morbidity and mortality rates (Radostits et al 2007; Ramin et al 2008) Because of their indiscriminate feeding habits, cattle are known to ingest and, at times, choke because of ingestion of different types of indigestible materials referred to as foreign bodies (Baumont 1996). The major penetrating foreign bodies include metallic pieces of wire, needles, nails and stones (Kahn & Line 2010; Nugusu et al 2013; Ramaswamy & Sharma 2011) Most of these foreign bodies were found mainly in the forestomachs and they are responsible for most pathological conditions affecting this area (Tehrani et al 2012). Industrialisation and agriculture mechanisation have further increased the occurrence of foreign bodies in ruminants, whilst in developing countries the high rate of occurrence is associated with poor farming management (Misk, Ahmed & Semieka 2004; Semieka 2010)
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