Abstract
Gastrointestinal parasite infection in small ruminants remains one of the major economic losses caused by reduced productivity. A total of 380 faecal samples were taken from 280 sheeps in Magway and Pwintbyu Townships and 100 goats in Natmauk Township, Myanmar. Faecal flotation and sedimentation methods were carried out to detect the presence of parasitic infections. Faecal egg and oocyst counts were carried out using the McMaster technique. The overall occurrence of gastrointestinal parasites in small ruminants was 98.4% (374/380). The occurrence of gastrointestinal parasites in sheep (99.3%) was higher than that in goats (96%). The highest occurrence was found in Eimeria spp. (96%), followed by Trichostrongyle (77.1%), Trichuris spp. (35%), and Moniezia expansa (14%). The mixed infection rate was 84.8% (317/374), while a single infection was 15.2% (57/374). The mean eggs per gram (EPG) and oocysts per gram (OPG) of faeces were ranged from 50 to 600 and 50 to 29,800, respectively. Among the 4 nucleotide sequences isolated, one sequence was 94.10-94.47% similarity with Trichostrongylus colubriformis, reported from Laos, and three sequences showed 96.64-99.46% identity with Haemonchus contortus from Laos, China, India, and Mongolia. As gastrointestinal parasite infection in small ruminants was relatively high in the study area, the development of appropriate treatment and control measures should be provided to reduce production losses.
Highlights
Intestinal parasites have become more difficult to manage in small ruminants because of the parasite’s increasing resistance to several anthelmintics [1]
Gastrointestinal (GI) parasite infection in ruminants results in adverse effects on feed intake, growth rate, carcass weight and composition, wool growth, fertility, and milk yield [2]. Another important parasitic infection in small ruminants is coccidiosis, which is caused by coccidian parasites of the genus Eimeria
Out of 380 faecal samples examined, 374 samples were positive for gastrointestinal parasites, with an overall occurrence of 98.4%
Summary
Intestinal parasites have become more difficult to manage in small ruminants because of the parasite’s increasing resistance to several anthelmintics [1]. Gastrointestinal (GI) parasite infection in ruminants results in adverse effects on feed intake, growth rate, carcass weight and composition, wool growth, fertility, and milk yield [2]. Another important parasitic infection in small ruminants is coccidiosis, which is caused by coccidian parasites of the genus Eimeria. It prevails prevalently in many parts of the world, either clinically or subclinically, and contributes to enteric disease, especially in young or stressed goats under poor farm management, leading to high mortality in goat kids [3]. Parasitic diseases negatively impact direct losses related to acute illness and death and damage, condemnation of organs, and cost of veterinary service and indirect losses, including decreases in productive potentials, such as decreased growth rate, weight loss in young growing animals, and late maturity of slaughter stock [5]
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