Seasonal Variation in Trypanosomosis Rates in Small Ruminants at the Kaduna Abattoir, Nigeria

Abstract

Seasonal variation in trypanosome parasitological infection rates in small
ruminants was studied at the Kaduna Central abattoir, North Central Nigeria.
Blood samples were obtained at slaughter from 320 goats and 209 sheep
during the dry and rainy seasons and examined using the Haematocrit
Centrifugation Technique, Buffy coat method and Giemsa stained blood
smears. The packed cell volume of the animals were also obtained. The over
all trypanosome infection rate in all small ruminants was 2.10%. Infection
rates in sheep and goats were 2.39% and 1.88% respectively. The infection
rates were higher in rainy season than the dry season while Trypanosoma
vivax was the dominant infecting trypanosome in all the ruminants followed
by T.congolense and T. brucei. Infection rates observed here were relatively
high and confirmed the resurgence of animal trypanosomosis in the country
and its threat to sustainable livestock production.
(Afr. J. Biomed. Res. 11: 229 - 232)

Key Words: Trypanosomosis, infection-rates, season, Kaduna, Nigeria.