Studies on parasitic gastroenteritis in sheep

Abstract

This study carried out at Dakahilia province in Nile Delta, Northern Egypt. To investigate some aspects of gastrointestinal nematode infestation as; prevalence, intensity of infestation according fecal egg counts, the effect of infestation on some hematological and biochemical parameters, and the efficacy of Albendazole, Ivermectin and Moxidectin in the treatment of infested cases. 532 native sheep of different ages (3 months to more than 2 years) were used from different localities during the period from October 2002 to September 2003. 408 out of 532 sheep were found to be infested with gastrointestinal nematodes with overall prevalence (76.69%) But, the majority of infested animals were of mild intensity of infestation according to the mean values of fecal egg counts. As counts of 100-500 EPG represented (75.24%) and counts of 500-2000 EPG represented (22.06%) whereas counts of 2000-5000 EPG represented only (2.69%). Results cleared a seasonal pattern and an age profile with significant differences. The overall prevalence of Trichuris ovis, Strongyloides papillosus, Nematodirus spp were (4.32%), (9.96%) ,and (3.00%) respectively whilst other Trichostrongyloides represented 75.75%. Fecal culture and larvae identification cleared the prevalence of the important abomasal Trichostrongyloids in decreasing order as Trichostrongylus spp (48.50%), Haemonchus contortus (37.35%), and Ostertagia spp. (28.84%). Naturally infested sheep revealed significant decrease of RBCs count, hemoglobin content and PCV especially in hemonchosis cases. Also, a significant increase in total leucocytic count is noticed. The results revealed also significant neutophilia, eosinophilia, and monocytosis while lymphocyte percent decreased significantly with infestation (lymphopenia). Treatment trial results revealed that, the comparative effectiveness of the three drugs was best for the Moxidectine treated group followed by the Ivermectine treated group then Albendazole treated group.