Seasonal prevalence of gastrointestinal nematodes of calves in Sokoto northwestern Nigeria
Keywords:
Seasonal prevalence, Gastrointestinal, Nematodes, Calves, SokotoAbstract
This study was conducted with the aim of determining the prevalence and distribution of gastrointestinal nematodes of calves in Sokoto metropolis. A total of 216 faecal samples from 54 calves were examined using Simple faecal floatation and Modified McMaster techniques for morphological egg differentiation and count of worm-egg per gram of faeces respectively. Positive samples were cultured to differentiate between morphologically indistinguishable nematode genera. An overall prevalence was found to be 133 (61.57%). The seasonal prevalence was found to be highest 40 (74.07%) during the early dry season, while the lowest prevalence was observed to be 19 (35.18%) in the early rainy season. Eight different nematode genera were identified with Cooperia spp being highest in prevalence (28.78%) followed by Haemonchus spp (26.76%) and the least was Toxocara spp (0.50%). The prevalence was generally higher in females (56.39%) than in males (43.61%). Statistically significant association (p<0.05) between the prevalence of the parasites and the different seasons was observed. Prevalence was low in indigenous breeds, Sokoto Gudali (15.04%) which is relatively resistant to helminthosis compared to crossbreeds (32.33%) and exotic, Friesian (52.63%) breeds. It is concluded that the late rainy and early dry seasons are conducive for the successive perpetuation of these parasites and therefore enhances subsequent transmission to susceptible hosts.
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Copyright (c) 2012 Aliyu Mahmuda, Aminu Alhaji Mohammed, Musbau O Alayande, Abdullahi Alhaji Magaji, Mohammed Danlami Salihu, Joseph Popoola Fabiyi, Mohammed Dalhatu Lawal, Yusuf Yakubu, Usman Mahmud, Abubakar Danmaigoro
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