Livestock Losses Research Articles

The Effect of Market Operations on Drought Induced Livestock Mortality in North Horr Ward of Marsabit County of Kenya

Drought is one of the disasters that occur naturally caused by changes in climate and weather which can lead to impacts on the economy, environment and society. The study objective was to establish the effect of access to markets on drought induced livestock mortality in Marsabit County. This study was anchored on two theories; the market theory and the theory of resource mobilisation focusing on assessing the role of market operation in reducing the livestock losses due to drought emergencies in Marsabit County. A causal design was adopted in this which is basing on quantitative approaches to figure out why phenomena happen as is often the purpose of researches carried out in social sciences. The location in which the study was done is North Horr Ward of North Horr-Sub County in Marsabit County. The study concluded that access to markets has a significant effect on drought induced livestock mortality in Marsabit County. With low accessibility to markets, the pastoralists may wish to sell of their livestock as drought situations worsen but fail to get their livestock in time to the markets. The respondents, however, observed that the accessibility to livestock markets in Marsabit County worsens during drought as herders and their livestock have to walk longer distances to the livestock. With better access to markets, pastoralists can sell away their livestock in good time ahead of serious drought catastrophes and reduce the chances of losing their livestock to mortality. Access to markets also increases the access to livestock feeds that would reduce the chances of livestock deaths due to reduced pasture.The study recommends improved accessibility of markets by the local government, national government and other stakeholders and partners should encourage the development of markets to make them more accessible for pastoralist communities in the events of droughts to help preserve the livelihoods of the households in these communities. By encouraging the development of markets, the losses in terms of livestock deaths induced by drought will be reduced, hence preserving the livelihoods. Consideration on the pastoral nomadic lifestyles of the communities should be made for increased accessibility. Development of mobile markets other than the permanent markets should be encouraged to help the communities that move further from civilisation during droughts in search for pasture to still have accessible markets to help reduce losses they incur when their livestocks die as they try to access markets.

Application of CRISP-DM methodology for managing human-wildlife conflicts: an empirical case study in India

Human-wildlife conflict (HWC) is a major concern for protected area management. Managing HWC around protected areas requires structured and replicable processes to reduce subjectivity and promote adherence to good governance principles. The Cross-Industry Standard Process for Data Mining (CRISP-DM) is a widely-used process model for structured decision-making. This study demonstrates the novel application of CRISP-DM to HWC related decision-making. We apply CRISP-DM and conduct hotspot and temporal (monthly) analysis of HWC data from Ramnagar Forest Division, India. Based on the patterns of crop loss, livestock loss, and human loss, we propose conflict-type and species-specific preventive strategies. A qualitative assessment of the initial outcomes of the ongoing implementation finds the preventive strategies to be effective. We suggest a participatory approach, localization of strategy, and need for data management as opportunities for improvement.

Downstream Economic Implications of Predation in the South African Red Meat Industry

Globally, predation is an important and ongoing problem facing the livestock sector. This study estimated the downstream economic impact of predation in the South African red meat industry using a recent South African Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) and a partial equilibrium model. Due to predation the total output decreased by R 3,806 million and R 648 million for large (cattle) and small livestock (sheep and goat), respectively. The result implies that the loss of livestock due to predation reduces the number of livestock available for marketing and the presence of predators influences the level and intensity of best management practices employed by the red meat industry. The findings of this study, which looked at the macroeconomic implications of predation in the South African red meat industry, as well as the biodiversity and ecology aspects of predation, could help government and policymakers develop appropriate policies and mitigation strategies to reduce prediction and prioritize strategies that will help lessen the impact of predation.

Lung Ultrasonography and Clinical Follow-Up Evaluations in Fattening Bulls Affected by Bovine Respiratory Disease (BRD) during the Restocking Period and after Tulathromycin and Ketoprofen Treatment.

Simple SummaryThe restocking period is a crucial time for fattening bulls: stressors such as transport predispose animals to bovine respiratory disease, reducing animal well-being and causing economic losses. Ultrasonography is a non-invasive, real-time, and portable method frequently employed in farming. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of the thoracic ultrasound in identifying animals with bovine respiratory disease on a restocking farm, and in assessing the efficacy of tulathromycin and ketoprofen treatment in sick animals. Our findings reveal that lung ultrasound is a useful diagnostic tool for screening respiratory diseases. Moreover, tulathromycin and ketoprofen treatment was effective in reducing both clinical symptoms and lung lesions. Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) is a global infectious disease, causing decreased well-being and economic losses in livestock, frequently during the restocking period. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of thoracic ultrasonography (TUS) to assess BRD in restocked animals, and the effectiveness of tulathromycin and ketoprofen treatment in sick animals. A total of 60 Limousin fattening bulls were enrolled. On the day of restocking (T0), the animals were divided into two groups based on TUS assessment of six lung areas: group C (ultrasonography score (US score) < 3) and group D (US score ≥ 3). Group D received a single administration of tulathromycin and ketoprofen at T0: this group was revaluated after 1.5, 3, 7, and 14 days. Both groups were revaluated after 21 days. The two groups showed a significant difference both in US score and clinical symptoms (respiratory score, nasal and ocular discharges, and rectal temperature) at T0. In group D, the treatment was effective in improving the clinical symptoms and US score, particularly reducing the severity of lung lesions. TUS represents a non-invasive and cost-effective tool for BRD early diagnosis and for monitoring treatment efficacy in restocked livestock.

Studies on Detection, Prevalence and Molecular Characterization of Avian Rotavirus

Rotaviruses are the foremost cause of acute gastroenteritis. Outbreaks of rotavirus infection can lead to significant economic losses in livestock and poultry industry. Group A and D rotavirus are the predominant enteric viruses groups in birds. Limited prevalence studies are available to date in India. Poultry samples consisting of 20 fecal samples and 80 intestinal content samples were screened by VP6 gene based diagnostic PCR for AvRVA and AvRVD. All samples were negative for group A rotavirus. Five fecal samples and 22 intestinal samples were positive for AvRVD-VP6 gene giving an amplicon of 185 bp giving a prevalence of 27%. Positive samples screened for VP4, VP7, NSP4 and NSP5 genes of AvRVD were negative for VP4, VP7 and NSP4 but six samples were positive for NSP5 gene giving an amplicon of 652 bp size. Cloning and sequencing showed 99.4 to 100% sequence similarity among all six isolates at nucleotide level. The percent nucleotide similarity with chicken RVD isolates was in the range 78.2-85.1%. All isolates showed highest similarity of 85% with chicken isolate from South Korea followed by Germany (81.5%) and Australia (78.2%). The phylogenetic analysis exhibited all six isolates clustered together in a separate clade with isolates from Australia, Germany and South Korea.

Multi-week prediction of livestock chill conditions associated with the northwest Queensland floods of February 2019

The compound extreme weather event that impacted northern Queensland in February 2019 featured record-breaking rainfall, persistent high wind gusts and relatively cold day-time temperatures. This caused livestock losses numbering around 500,000 in the northwest Queensland Gulf region. In this study, we examine the livestock chill conditions associated with this week-long compound weather event and its potential for prediction from eleven world-leading sub-seasonal to seasonal (S2S) forecast systems. The livestock chill index combines daily rainfall, wind and surface temperature data. Averaged over the event week, the potential heat loss of livestock was in the moderate to high category, with severe conditions on the day of peak rainfall (5 February). Using calibrated forecasts from the Bureau of Meteorology's S2S forecast system, ACCESS-S1, a 1-week lead prediction showed a 20–30% probability of extreme livestock chill conditions over the northwest Queensland Gulf region, however the highest probabilities were located to the west of where the greatest livestock impacts were observed. Of the remaining ten S2S systems, around half predicted a more than 20% chance of extreme conditions, more than twice the climatological probability. It appears that the prediction accuracy arose from the skilful forecasts of extreme rainfall, as opposed to cold day-time temperature and strong wind forecasts. Despite a clear association between the observed extreme weather conditions and an active Madden–Julian Oscillation (MJO) event stalling in the western Pacific, the majority of 1-week lead S2S forecasts showed little indication of a slow-down in the MJO. As the livestock chill index was developed for southern Australian sheep, it may not be the best metric to represent the effects of exposure on tropical cattle breeds. Hence, this study draws attention to the need for tailored diagnostics that better represent the cold effects of summer tropical cyclones and tropical depressions on northern Australian livestock.

Circulating serogroups of Leptospira in swine from a 7-year study in France (2011\u20132017)

BackgroundLeptospirosis is a widespread zoonotic disease caused by pathogenic Leptospira and is responsible for significant economic porcine livestock losses. Knowledge of Leptospira serogroups and their distributions is important for evaluation of the relevance of leptospirosis management measures, including use of the prophylactic vaccine that was recently made available in France. A retrospective study was conducted to determine the relationships between different circulating Leptospira serogroups. Pigs from across France presenting clinical signs suggestive of leptospirosis were tested with the microagglutination test (MAT) between 2011 and 2017. We used weighted averages to determine serogroup distributions according to MAT results and considering cross-reactions.ResultsA total of 19,395 pig sera, mostly from Brittany, were tested, and 22.7% were found to be positive for at least one Leptospira serogroup. Analysis of the 4,346 seropositive results for which the putative infective serogroup could be defined, revealed that two out of ten serogroups were much more frequent than the others: Australis (48.5%) and Icterohaemorrhagiae (38.2%). Other serogroups, including Autumnalis, Panama, Ballum, Tarassovi, Sejroe, Grippotyphosa, Bataviae, and Pomona, were less common.ConclusionsAlthough diagnostic laboratory data cannot be extrapolated to infer the distribution of Leptospira serogroups at the nationwide scale in France, the analysis of such data can provide an overview of the relationship between circulating Leptospira serogroups in space and time. During the last decade, protection against the serogroups Australis and Icterohaemorrhagiae would have prevented most of the clinical porcine leptospirosis cases in the large number of farms that we studied. In the future, epidemiological information related to circulating Leptospira serogroups should be extracted from data with a standardized approach for use in nationwide or international surveillance and prophylactic strategy support.

Population estimation and livestock loss by spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta) in Damota community managed forest, Southern Ethiopia

The spotted hyena is positioned at the top of food chains and has the ability to influence the diversity of herbivores. Knowledge of this predator through research can assist in effective management decisions which will ensure ecosystem integrity. A study on population estimation and livestock loss by the spotted hyenas was conducted from January 2019 to December 2020 in the Damota community managed forests. Data was collected through distance sampling techniques, and the economic impacts of spotted hyena predation on livestock were quantified using a questionnaire survey with randomly selected households. Twenty-five transects were monitored over a period of two consecutive years. A mean of 113 ± 0.51 individuals of spotted hyena was observed per 100 km 2 . The density of spotted hyena was 1.34 ± 0.42 and 0.69 ± 0.12 individuals/km2 and 0.55 ± 0.97 and 0.75 ± 0.14 individuals/km 2 in farm and forest during 2019 and 2020, respectively. The mean sex ratio of the adult male to adult female was 0.56:1.00 and 0.74:1.00 during the dry and wet seasons, respectively. Moreover, the mean sex ratio of adult to cub was 1:0.25 and 1:0.29 during the dry and wet seasons, respectively. Respondents indicated a total loss of 377 livestock due to the depredation of spotted hyenas over the past five years. The total estimated economic loss caused by depredation, theft, and diseases was US$ 47,885. On average, US$ 9577 per year (US$ 26 per day) has been lost over the past five years. The average annual depredation per household was 0.98 head of livestock worth US$ 95.6. Among depredated livestock, 64.8% of sheep were lost by spotted hyena, followed by donkey (16.4%). Therefore, livestock management practices, assessment of spotted hyena population, and economic loss are very important for carnivore conservation and scaling up human livelihood development.

Bovine and human brucellosis in southern Mexico: A neglected zoonosis

Brucellosis is a neglected zoonosis and a public health problem in developing countries that also causes great economic losses in livestock. In Mexico it is endemic and Chiapas, a state in the south of the country, stands out for the presence of the disease in humans. Through the review of the state of the art it was found that factors such as the high production of cattle, the limited institutional strategies to control the disease in livestock, the lack of sanitary regulation of the genus Brucella in dairy and meat products and the location of the state of Chiapas on the border with Central America could be determining factors for the prevalence of human brucellosis in this region of Mexico.

Factors Affecting Livestock Guarding Dogs’ Proximity to Their Herd and Association With Perceived Effectiveness

Livestock guarding dogs (LGDs) are utilized worldwide as a non-lethal strategy to alleviate human-wildlife conflict. However, while studies show their effectiveness, resulting in reductions of livestock loss, there is limited research into the factors that influence individual dog variation. One factor which may be important is the proximity of the dog to the herd it is guarding, as well as subtle aspects of its behavior. This small-scale study investigates individual differences in proximity and behavior and the potential influencing environmental factors. It compares these to the dog's perceived effectiveness, as rated by the herder who regularly works with them. We attached GPS collars to 8 LGDs and a ‘lead’ goat from their respective herd to track proximity during grazing visits to the Namibian bush. For 4 dogs, the data spanned 2 years, so we examined consistency of proximity, both within, and between, years. We also examined associations between temperature, time of day and vegetation density and the LGD's proximity to the herd. In addition, behavioral observations were conducted for 3 of the dogs to compare to the data derived from the collars. Individual dogs varied in their proximity to the herd and showed consistency within (F(7,4180)=36.8, P < 0.001) and between the 2 years (r=0.99. P = 0.012). Proximity was significantly associated with time of day (F(1,4180)=19.3, P < 0.001), but not with daily temperature (F(1,4180) = 0.003, P = 0.96). Dogs tended to be closer to the herd at the start and end of the day. Whilst vegetation density did not have a universal effect (F(2,4180) = 0.99, P = 0.393), some dogs showed distinct patterns of change in proximity with differences in vegetation density (F(14,4180) = 3.60, P < 0.01). This suggests some dogs were modifying their behavior in response to relative predation risk. The herder tended to rate those dogs, which were recorded to be closest, as more effective. Behavioral observations of distance correlated well with the data gathered from GPS collars but, in most cases, the dog was observed to be closer to other herd members than to the collared lead goat. We conclude that measuring dog proximity to the herd is a useful way to monitor behavior, but that monitoring multiple sheep or goats, and also conducting behavioral observations is integral to understanding ways to maximize performance.

Penerapan Metode Prototype Dalam Merancang Purwarupa Pengaman Pintu Kandang Ternak Otomatis Berbasis Mikrokontroler ATMEGA 328P

Cattle cage is a term that refers to a structure used to house farm animals or animal homes. The structure might be in the form of a container, a building, or something else entirely, depending on the type of animal being farmed. Because most cattle shed doors are slotted or padlocked, there is a high rate of theft from irresponsible individuals seeking to take livestock without permission. The primary objective of this research is to devise a security system capable of keeping cattle pens secure and free of thieves or burglars that cause livestock loss. The author chooses the Atmega 328 microcontroller because it features a Harvard architecture that separates program code and data memory to maximize work and parallelism. Additionally, this circuit may be connected to an Arduino Uno to create a variety of electronic circuits ranging from simple to complicated. LED control, helicopter control, servo drive control, and robot control can all be implemented by adding specific components. Thus, a prototype was created for an automatic door safety system that employs an infrared sensor to detect the presence of animals and automatically opens the entrance, locking it with a password and ringing a buzzer in front of the farmer's house if the password is incorrect. This tool was created to help minimize cattle losses due to theft.

Puma responses to unreliable human cues suggest an ecological trap in a fragmented landscape

Animals' fear of people is widespread across taxa and can mitigate the risk of human‐induced mortality, facilitating coexistence in human‐dominated landscapes. However, humans can be unpredictable predators and anthropogenic cues that animals perceive may not be reliable indicators of the risk of being killed. In these cases, animal fear responses may be ineffective and may even exacerbate the risk of anthropogenic mortality. Here, we explore these questions using a 10‐year dataset of movement and mortality events for the puma Puma concolor population in the fragmented Santa Cruz Mountains of California, for whom the leading cause of death was retaliatory killings by people following livestock loss. We modeled retaliatory killing risk and puma habitat selection relative to residential housing density to evaluate whether puma avoidance of human cues reflected their risk of being killed. We documented a mismatch between human cues, fear responses and actual risk. Rather than scaling directly with housing density, retaliatory killings occurred at intermediate levels of human development and at night. Pumas avoided these areas during the day but selected for these high‐risk areas at night, resulting in a mismatch between cue and risk impacting 17% of the study area. These results are unlikely to be driven by puma hunting behavior: livestock constitute a very small proportion of puma diets, and we found no evidence for the alternative hypothesis that state‐dependent foraging drove depredation of livestock and subsequent retaliatory killings. Our findings indicate that puma responses to human cues are not sufficient to enable human–carnivore coexistence in this area and suggest that reducing risk from humans in places with few perceptible human cues would facilitate carnivore conservation in human‐dominated landscapes. Furthermore, a mismatch between human cues and responses by carnivores can lead to selection rather than avoidance of risky areas, which could result in an ecological trap.

Maternal Time Use Drives Suboptimal Complementary Feeding Practices in the El Niño-Affected Eastern Ethiopia Community.

Ethiopia is affected by recurrent drought and food-insecurity crises, including El Niño. El Niño started in mid-2014, worsened in 2015, and continued in 2016, leading to a widespread food-insecurity emergency resulting in a surge in the rate of acute malnutrition in infants due to suboptimal feeding practices. This study explored how El Niño influenced complementary feeding practices in the eastern Ethiopia community from March to September 2016. It was an exploratory qualitative study with a basic interpretative qualitative approach. A general inductive approach was used for the analysis. The study involved 11 focus group discussions (FGD) with a total of 76 people, including three with mothers, three with Health Development Army (HDA) leaders, two with fathers, two with traditional birth attendants, and one with religious leaders. El Niño resulted in failed crops and loss of livestock, resulting in reduced dietary diversity and meal frequency. El Niño resulted in suboptimal complementary feeding practices by reducing food access and altering livelihood and coping strategies, reducing the time mothers allocated to child feeding, keeping them away from home, and stressing community health services. The maternal suboptimal time allocation is central to the poor complementary feeding practices. Thus, the women should be supported with climate-resilient livelihood options in their villages, allowing them to feed their children and attend education sessions with HDA leaders.

Field evaluation of the enhanced MM3-COPRO ELISA test for the diagnosis of Fasciola hepatica infection in sheep.

Fasciolosis is a severe zoonosis responsible for major economic losses in livestock. The enhanced MM3-COPRO test (eMM3-COPRO) and the commercial version BIO K 201 (Bio-X Diagnostics, Rochefort, Belgium) are widely used as immunodiagnostic tools for the specific detection of coproantigens released by Fasciola during the late prepatent and patent stages of infection. However, performance of the eMM3-COPRO has never been evaluated under field conditions. To address this gap, a large number of ovine faecal samples, collected in a region where fasciolosis is endemic (Galicia, NW Spain), were analyzed. Two groups of sheep flocks were selected according to the Fasciola infection status: ‘Fasciola-free’ and ‘Fasciola-infected’ flocks. ‘Fasciola-free’ flocks were seronegative flocks with no history of fasciolosis detected by either coproscopy or necropsy in the last 5 years. Faecal samples from these sheep were used to calculate a cut-off value for infection (OD = 0.021). The cut-off was calculated using a bootstrap resampling method that enables estimation of the sampling distribution of the statistical parameters without making assumptions about the underlying data distribution. ‘Fasciola-infected’ flocks were characterized by high seroprevalence, a history of fasciolosis and periodical treatment with flukicides. Samples from these flocks were used to estimate the diagnostic accuracy of the eMM3-COPRO relative to coproscopy, which although limited by poor sensitivity is the only reference test available for diagnosing fasciolosis in vivo. To overcome this limitation, all animals classified positive by eMM3-COPRO were treated with triclabendazole and then retested. The eMM3-COPRO displayed higher sensitivity than coproscopy, as it detected coproantigens in all samples with positive coproscopy and in 12% of samples with negative coproscopy. The test also proved highly specific as coproantigens disappeared after the treatment. The eMM3-COPRO was less time consuming than coproscopy, particularly when the procedure involved numerous samples, and showed promise as a tool for monitoring flukicide efficacy.

Effect of chronic and acute enterotoxigenic E. coli challenge on growth performance, intestinal inflammation, microbiome, and metabolome of weaned piglets

Post-weaning enteropathies in swine caused by pathogenic E. coli, such as post-weaning diarrhea (PWD) or edema disease (ED), remain a significant problem for the swine industry. Reduction in the use of antibiotics over concerns of antibiotic resistance and public health concerns, necessitate the evaluation of effective antibiotic alternatives to prevent significant loss of livestock and/or reductions in swine growth performance. For this purpose, an appropriate piglet model of pathogenic E. coli enteropathy is required. In this study, we attempted to induce clinical signs of post-weaning disease in a piglet model using a one-time acute or lower daily chronic dose of a pathogenic E. coli strain containing genes for both heat stable and labile toxins, as well as Shiga toxin. The induced disease state was monitored by determining fecal shedding and colonization of the challenge strain, animal growth performance, cytokine levels, fecal calprotectin, histology, fecal metabolomics, and fecal microbiome shifts. The most informative analyses were colonization and shedding of the pathogen, serum cytokines, metabolomics, and targeted metagenomics to determine dysbiosis. Histopathological changes of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract and tight junction leakage as measured by fecal calprotectin concentrations were not observed. Chronic dosing was similar to the acute regimen suggesting that a high dose of pathogen, as used in many studies, may not be necessary. The piglet disease model presented here can be used to evaluate alternative PWD treatment options.

Attitudes towards free-roaming dogs and dog ownership practices in Bulgaria, Italy, and Ukraine.

Free-roaming dog population management is conducted to mitigate risks to public health, livestock losses, wildlife conservation, and dog health and welfare. This study aimed to determine attitudes towards free-roaming dogs and their management and describe dog ownership practices in three European countries. We distributed an online questionnaire comprising questions relating to dog ownership practices and attitudes towards free-roaming dogs using social media. We used logistic regression and ordinal probit models to determine associations between demographic and other factors with ownership practices and attitudes towards free-roaming dogs. This study found that most surveyed respondents wanted to see a reduction in free-roaming dog numbers, and felt that this should be achieved through sheltering, catch-neuter-release, and by controlling owned dog breeding. We identified significant associations between both attitudes and ownership practices with gender, religious beliefs, age, education level, reason for dog ownership, previous experience with free-roaming dogs, and country of residence. Respondents who identified as: (i) male, (ii) holding religious beliefs, (iii) owning dogs for practical reasons, (iv) being young, or (v) having no schooling or primary education had a lower probability of neutering and a higher probability of allowing dogs to roam. Respondents who identified as: (i) female, (ii) feeling threatened by free-roaming dogs, (iii) older, or (iv) having more education had a higher probability of answering that increases in free-roaming dog numbers should be prevented. These findings can help to inform future dog population management interventions in these countries. We emphasise the importance of considering local attitudes and dog ownership practices in the development of effective dog population management approaches.

Leptospira interrogans Serogroup Pomona in a Dairy Cattle Farm in a Multi-Host Zootechnical System.

Bovine leptospirosis is an infectious zoonotic disease causing reproductive problems and economic losses in livestock. This work reports, for the first time in Sicily (South Italy), an outbreak of Leptospira interrogans serogroup Pomona that occurred in cattle farms within the Nebrodi Park and was mainly characterized by full-term abortion. Blood and urine samples were collected at different time points from animals of six different farms (Farms A–F) sharing the same grazing area. Research of antibodies against pathogenic Leptospira species in serum samples was carried out via Micro Agglutination Test (MAT). Urine samples were subjected to pathogen isolation and molecular analyses via TaqMan Real Time-PCR. Genotyping of Leptospira species was obtained by Multi-locus sequence typing. MAT detected antibodies against Leptospira interrogans serogroup Pomona in serum samples of all the farms. Pathogenic Leptospira spp. DNA and culture isolation was obtained from urine samples. Genotyping confirmed the excretion of L. interrogans serogroup Pomona. This study describes clinical manifestations, diagnostic implications and epidemiological characteristics of an outbreak in cattle due to L. interrogans Pomona in a protected multi-host area, where domestic and wild animals share the same habitat, suggesting a role of wild species in transmission and persistence of Pomona serogroup among cattle.

Seroprevalence of brucellosis, Q fever and Rift Valley fever in domestic ruminants in Guinea in 2017\u20132019

BackgroundBrucellosis, Q fever and Rift Valley fever are considered as Neglected Zoonotic Diseases (NZDs) leading to socioeconomic losses in livestock globally, and particularly in developing countries of Africa where they are under-reported. In this study, we evaluated the seroprevalence of these 3 zoonotic diseases in domestic ruminants in Guinea from 2017 to 2019. A total of 1357 sera, sampled from 463 cattle, 408 goats and 486 sheep, were collected in 17 Guinean prefectures and analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).ResultsCattle was the species with highest seroprevalence (5 to 20-fold higher than in small ruminants) for the three diseases. The seroprevalence of brucellosis, mostly focused in Western Guinea, was 11.0% (51 of 463) in cattle, 0.4% (2 in 486) in sheep while no specific antibodies were found in goats. Q fever, widespread across the country, was the most frequently detected zoonosis with a mean seroprevalence of 20.5% (95 in 463), 4.4% (18 in 408) and 2.3% (11 in 486) in cattle, goats and sheep, respectively. The mean seroprevalence of RVF was 16.4% (76 in 463) in cattle, 1.0% (4 in 408) in goats and 1.0% (5 in 486) in sheep. Among the samples 19.3% were seropositive for at least one of the three NZDs, 2.5% showed specific antibodies against at least two pathogens and 4 cattle (0.8%) were seropositive for all three pathogens. In cattle, adults over 3-years old and females presented a higher antibody seroprevalence for the three diseases, in congruence with putative exposure risk.ConclusionsThis study confirms the circulation of these three zoonotic pathogens in Guinea and highlights the need for implementing a syndromic surveillance of ruminant abortions by the Guinean veterinary authorities as well as for the screening of the human population at risk (veterinarians, breeders, slaughterers) in a One Health perspective.

Outlook threat at the future climate changes on livestock resources

Food availability is the most important issue that takes the priority places in the policies of all countries all over the world. Recently, more attention has been paid to livestock because of their ability to produce meat and milk, as well as it has a significant source of income for small holders and an economic contributor to the gross domestic product. Climate changes induced physiological stress, which is one of the complex factors making livestock management and husbandry challenging in many geographical locations in the world. Increased body temperature or heat stress will cause production losses in livestock and impact on their ability to maintain normal function. There is considerable research evidence that showed significant decline in animal performance when subjected to heat stress. Heat stress inflicts heavy economic losses on livestock production. The effects of heat stress is evident in feed consumption, production efficiency in terms of milk yield or weight gain per unit of feed energy, growth rate, and reproductive efficiency. The aim of this article is to discuss increasing food production to ensure food security for nearly 8 billion people, without causing further environmental damage that can be achieved by transforming systems and adopting sustainable livestock practices within a changing climate.

Large-Scale Sheep Losses to Wolves (Canis lupus) in Germany Are Related to the Expansion of the Wolf Population but Not to Increasing Wolf Numbers

Recovery of predator populations triggers conflicts due to livestock depredation losses, particularly in Germany where the wolf (Canis lupus) population grows exponentially and livestock (especially sheep) losses raise public concerns and motivate the authorities to control wolf numbers. Yet, the effects of wolf numbers and alternative factors, such as abundance of prey and livestock, on livestock losses in this country are not investigated. In this study, we collected and analyzed data on the numbers of reproductive units of wolves (packs and pairs together) as a surrogate of adult wolf numbers, sheep killed by wolves, living sheep, red deer (Cervus elaphus), roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), and wild boar (Sus scrofa) in every German state and year from 2002 to 2019. We applied a negative binomial Generalized Linear Mixed Model (GLMM) to estimate the effects of these predictors on the numbers of sheep killed by wolves. We also examined the relationships between the percentages of killed/living sheep and the numbers of living sheep. Ranking of 63 models based on the Akaike information criterion revealed that sheep losses were determined by state, year, and number of living sheep, not by wolf numbers, at high precision and accuracy. The number of sheep killed by wolves increased consistently by 41% per year and by 30% for every additional 10,000 sheep, mainly in the north where most wolf territories are concentrated. This means that sheep are protected insufficiently and/or ineffectively. The percentages of killed/living sheep consistently increased by 0.02–0.05% per state and year, with the maximum percentage of 0.7%, on a backdrop of decreasing numbers of living sheep. In conclusion, we demonstrate that sheep losses in Germany have been driven by the expansion of the wolf population, not by wolf numbers, and by the number of sheep available. We suggest that Germany’s wolf conservation policy should focus on alternative non-lethal interventions, enforcement and standardization of intervention monitoring, and promotion of wolf tolerance rather than on lethal control of wolf population size.