Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices of Poultry Farmers Regarding the Control of Chicken Coccidiosis in Lagos State, Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Coccidiosis, caused by coccidia of the genus Eimeria, accounts for significant production loss-es in the global poultry industry. This study evaluated commercial poultry farmers’ knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAPs) on chicken coccidiosis and its control in Lagos State, Nigeria. Methods: Semi-structured questionnaires assessing KAPs relating to chicken coccidiosis and its control were administered to 157 poultry farmers. Summary statistics were performed on the collated data using the Statis-tical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software. The relationship between respondents’ knowledge and demographic features was analysed using the Chi-square test of independence on SPSS. Results were consid-ered significant at p < 0.05. Results: The majority of the respondents were males (91, 58%), married (108, 68.7%), and between 31 and 50 years old (106, 67.5%). Most have had tertiary education (84, 53.5%) and farming experience between 1 and 5 years (97, 61.8%). All the respondents have heard about coccidiosis previously, and of these, 57 (36.3%), 45 (28.7%), and 37 (23.6%) sourced this information from veterinarians, fellow farmers, and during training/workshops, respectively. Ingestion of faecally contaminated feed and water by chickens was opined as the cause of coccidiosis by 48 (30.6%) respondents, followed by bacteria (30, 19.1%) and poor hygiene and sanitation (27, 17.2%). Most mentioned that ingesting faecally contaminated feed and water (126, 80.2%) is the mode of coccidiosis transmission, and 76 (48.4%) identified bloody and watery diarrhea as the major clinical sign. The gender of the farmers and their educational status were significantly associated with the level of coccidiosis knowledge. Of the study participants, 150 (95.5%) have experienced an outbreak of coccidiosis on their farms before, and the majority observed bloody diarrhea (90, 60.0%) as the major clinical sign. None of the farmers used ionophore drugs. Embazin-forte® (Sulphaquinoxaline) was the drug most reportedly used to prevent and treat coccidiosis. Few farmers (11, 7%) adopted anticoccidial vaccines for coccidiosis prevention using either Immucox®, Livacox®, or both. Conclusion: This study showed that poultry farmers in Lagos State have adequate knowledge of chicken coccidiosis. Chemical anticoccidials were the only drugs used for prevention and treatment, and vaccines were not adopted. There is a need for veterinarians and poultry extension workers to enlighten farmers in the study area about the proper, safe, and effective use of anticoccidial drugs and vaccines.