The death rate of Ostertagia circumcincta and Trichostrongylus colubriformis in lactating ewes: Implications for anthelmintic resistance

Abstract

Lactating adult Romney ewes were infected, 4 weeks post-lambing, with benzimidazole (bz) resistant strains of Ostertagia circumcincta and Trichostrongylus colubriformis. Commencing 4 weeks after the initial infection the ewes were subjected to challenge 3 times weekly with 5000 L3 of bz-susceptible strains of both parasite species. At weekly intervals over the following 6 weeks, groups of ewes were drenched with a bz anthelmintic (oxfendazole) to remove bz-susceptible parasites and slaughtered to determine adult worm burdens of the bz-resistant parasites. The O. circumcincta infection declined exponentially with a mean daily death rate of 10.6% day −1 and no worms were recovered after 4 weeks or more of challenge. The T. colubriformis infection did not decline significantly over the 6 weeks of continuous challenge, indicating that the death rate could not be distinguished from zero. The upper 95% confidence limit for the death rate of T. colubriformis was 4.9%. The implications of these death rates on selection for drug resistance following ewe drenching during the post-partum period are discussed with selection pressure likely to be greater for T. colubriformis than for O. circumcincta.