Ruminant behaviour in subclinical parasitic gastroenteritis

Livestock ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 78-85
Author(s):  
Andrew Forbes
Keyword(s):  
Parasite Control ◽  
Lower Growth ◽  
Sensing Technology ◽  
Helminth Infections ◽  
Feasible Option ◽  
Parasitic Gastroenteritis ◽  
Commercial Farms ◽  
Free Ranging ◽  
Grazing Livestock ◽  
Cattle And Sheep

Behavioural changes in cattle and sheep are used in clinical diagnosis to detect abnormalities and to help determine the aetiology. In many parasitic diseases, infections can be subclinical, but their impact on performance can still be of importance in a farming setting. A common feature of helminth infections is a reduction in feed intake, which can account for lower growth rates and milk yields, yet inappetence is difficult to detect in free-ranging, grazing livestock. Remote-sensing technology can facilitate data collection and is useful not only in research, but is a feasible option now on commercial farms. If inappetence in grazing sheep and cattle as a result of parasitic gastroenteritis can be easily monitored and assessed, then early interventions may be possible and these can ensure that animal performance is kept on target. Application of such approaches is consistent with the principles of responsible use of anthelmintics and targeted selective treatments, which can be further integrated into complementary elements of parasite control, including grazing management.

Global perspectives on nematode parasite control in ruminant livestock: the need to adopt alternatives to chemotherapy, with emphasis on biological control

2003 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 35-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter J. Waller
Keyword(s):  
Biological Control ◽  
Parasite Control ◽  
Control Approach ◽  
Global Perspectives ◽  
Nematode Parasites ◽  
Stage Of Development ◽  
Recent Innovation ◽  
Prophylactic Use ◽  
Grazing Livestock ◽  
Ruminant Livestock

AbstractEffective, sustainable control of nematode parasites of grazing livestock is becoming evermore challenging and difficult. This is largely due to two contrasting issues. One is the rapid escalation of resistance to anthelmintic drugs, which is arguably the greatest problem now facing the small ruminant industries worldwide. Secondly, there is the increasing trend towards organic farming, in which there is prohibition of the prophylactic use of all chemical compounds. Livestock producers urgently need non-chemotherapeutic alternatives in parasite control. Researchers have responded to this challenge and a variety of quite different approaches have been the subject of intense investigation in many countries for several decades now. These vary in relation to their stage of development for on-farm use, their utility, and their applicability across the spectrum of grazing livestock enterprises throughout the world. One relatively recent innovation is the biological control approach to nematode parasites. This has now reached the stage of commercialization. This review focuses on these issues and provides an overview of the possible ways in which the biological control of nematode parasites could be employed in grazing ruminant livestock systems worldwide.

9.8 The Role of Forbs and Shrubs in the Nitrogen Intake of Grazing Livestock in the Accra Plains

1982 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 189-191
Author(s):  
F. K. Fianu
Keyword(s):  
Rainy Season ◽  
Ecological Status ◽  
Panicum Maximum ◽  
Andropogon Gayanus ◽  
Nitrogen Intake ◽  
Almost All ◽  
Free Ranging ◽  
Grazing Livestock ◽  
Accra Plains

Free ranging cattle in the Accra Plains of Ghana have an almost all grass diet during the rainy season when lush grass abounds (Fianu, 1966). Depending on the ecological status of the grassland, the prominent species include Andropogon gayanus, Brachiaria falcifera, Panicum maximum, Schizachyrium schweinfurthii and Vetiveria fulvibarbis. On bush fallows, grasses of lower successional status, e.g. Chloris and Digitaria spp., are grazed.At the start of the rainy season (March-April), the young herbage may contain as much as 2.8% N. As the plant matures, however, the N content declines rapidly below critical levels, e.g. 0.95-1.3% at 18 weeks (Fianu and Winch, 1980) and 0.6-0.8% at 38 weeks (Lansbury, Rose Innes and Mabey, 1965).Such mature grass is burnt in the dry season to induce a more nutritious flush but hard grazing and slashing also induce equally nutritious regrowth (Fianu and Winch, 1980).

Reliability of the sulfur hexafluoride tracer technique for methane emission measurement from individual animals: an overview

2008 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 223 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. S. Pinares-Patiño ◽  
H. Clark
Keyword(s):  
Sulfur Hexafluoride ◽  
Emission Measurement ◽  
Ch4 Emission ◽  
Tracer Technique ◽  
Sample Collection ◽  
Animal Training ◽  
Enteric Methane ◽  
Free Ranging ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Cattle And Sheep

Measurements of enteric methane (CH4) emissions from individual animals have traditionally been made with indirect calorimetry techniques, which are both accurate and reliable. However, the expense and need for animal training and the extent to which calorimetric results can be extrapolated to free-ranging animals have been questioned and stimulated the development of the sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) tracer technique. The tracer technique is now widely used in New Zealand and many other countries for CH4 emission measurements on grazing and pen-fed cattle, sheep, deer and alpacas. Few studies with cattle and sheep have examined the validity of the SF6 tracer technique. Most of these studies have concluded that estimations of CH4 emission by this technique do not differ from those of calorimetric techniques, though some exceptions have been reported. There is general agreement that the tracer technique is associated with large between-animal variability in the CH4 emission estimates from animals on the same diet, but it remains unknown whether this is due to the environment, housing conditions or the technique itself. High within-animal variability has also been reported from tracer CH4 measurements. There is growing evidence that CH4 emission estimates by the tracer technique are positively influenced by the permeation rate (PR) of the SF6 gas from permeation tubes and it has been suggested that fate of the tracer in the rumen rather than unrepresentative breath sample collection is the likely reason for the latter. It is concluded that although some issues related to the tracer technique need to be clarified, using a narrow range in PR and balancing of PR between treatments should be practised in order to overcome the relationship between PR and CH4 emission estimates.

Efficacy of a controlled release intraruminal device containing Albendazole against helminth infections in cattle

1989 ◽  
Vol 1989 ◽  
pp. 148-148
Author(s):  
S.L. Bell ◽  
K.W. Perry ◽  
P. Rowlinson
Keyword(s):  
Controlled Release ◽  
Animal Health ◽  
Intestinal Nematode ◽  
Preventative Measures ◽  
Helminth Infections ◽  
Parasitic Gastroenteritis ◽  
Group A ◽  
Grazing Period ◽  
Single Field ◽  
Group B

The importance of subclinical parasitic gastroenteritis (PCE) in terms of reduced productivity has recently been recognised, and this has caused attention to be focussed on prevention of infection as opposed to cure. The process of strategic treatment with anthelmintics and movement to fresh grazing proposed by Michel (1969), has been superseded by the need for preventative measures based solely upon anthelmintic control, rather than strict grazing rotation, and in response to this demand several systems have been developed.In this trial the efficacy of a controlled release bolus containing albendazole, Captec, (Smith Kline Animal Health, Ltd., CSIRO) against gastro-intestinal nematode infections in first season calves was evaluated, the nematode challenge being monitored using untreated control calves.2 groups of 20 heifer calves of approximately 9 months of age at turnout, were grazed from May to October on separate, adjacent paddocks obtained by splitting a single field which had been grazed by cattle the previous autumn. The allocation of calves to each group was such that the mean liveweight and range of liveweights within each group were similar. At turnout each calf in group A received a Captec bolus, group B being untreated controls. Total numbers and species of infective larvae present on the pasture were monitored throughout the grazing period. The calves were weighed and samples were regularly collected for the determination of faecal egg output, serum pepsinogen and plasma gastrin concentration. Post mortem worm burdens were assessed in 7 calves per group on day 100 after turnout, and again in 3 calves per group 1 week after housing.

scholarly journals Epidemiology of helminth infections: implications for parasite control programmes, a South African perspective

2001 ◽  
Vol 4 (6) ◽  
pp. 1211-1219 ◽  
Author(s):  
CC Jinabhai ◽  
M Taylor ◽  
A Coutsoudis ◽  
HM Coovadia ◽  
AM Tomkins ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
School Children ◽  
Control Programme ◽  
Post Treatment ◽  
Primary School Children ◽  
World Health ◽  
Parasite Control ◽  
The South ◽  
School Based ◽  
Helminth Infections

AbstractObjectives:To determine the epidemiology of helminthic infections and the efficacy of parasite treatment among rural South African primary school children in the province of KwaZulu-Natal. To assess the South African government's parasite control policy.Methods:The study recruited 268 school children, aged 8 to 10, and randomly allocated them into treatment and placebo groups (treatment consisted of a single dose of albendazole (400 mg) and praziquantel (40 mg/kg)). Anthropometric measurements and the prevalence and intensity of helminth infections were taken at baseline (prior to treatment) and 16 weeks post treatment. Two weeks after treatment prevalence and intensity were again measured for an approximate 50% sub-sample of the children to investigate efficacy of treatment. An analysis of the South African government's policies concerning parasite control is assessed in the light of these epidemiological findings.Results:Low levels of both stunting and wasting were observed throughout the study (approximately 10% and 1%, respectively), but did not vary significantly across either treatment group or time period (P>0.50). At baseline the observed prevalences for the three main helminths found in this study among the treated children were Ascaris lumbricoides 29.5%, Trichuris trichiura 51.9% and Schistosoma haematobium 22.3%. These prevalences declined significantly to 4.7% (P<0.0005), 38.0% (P<0.03) and 3.3% (P<0.0002), respectively, 16 weeks post treatment. The majority of infections observed at baseline were of light intensity, namely A. lumbricoides (50%), T. trichiura (80%) and S. haematobium (100%), and following treatment these levels were reduced significantly (P<0.0001, P<0.05 and P<0.005, respectively). The levels of both prevalence and intensity in the untreated group remained constant. The cure rates over the first two weeks of the study were found to be 94.4% for A. lumbricoides, 40% for T. trichiura and 72.2% for S. haematobium.Conclusion:The benefits of targeted, school-based treatment in reducing the prevalence and intensity of infection supports the South African government's focus of using school-based interventions as part of an integrated parasite control programme. These strategies and programmes are consistent with recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO) and The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).

scholarly journals Helminth infections in Italian donkeys: Strongylus vulgaris more common than Dictyocaulus arnfieldi

2021 ◽  
Vol 95 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Buono ◽  
F. Veronesi ◽  
L. Pacifico ◽  
C. Roncoroni ◽  
E. Napoli ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Herd Size ◽  
Parasite Control ◽  
Sedimentation Technique ◽  
Helminth Infections ◽  
Strongylus Vulgaris ◽  
Faecal Samples ◽  
Flotation Method ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Living Area ◽  
Strongyloides Westeri

Abstract Donkeys have been used as working animals for transport and farm activities worldwide. Recently, in European countries, there has been an increasing interest in donkeys due to their use as pets, onotherapy or milk production. During 2014–2016, a countrywide survey was conducted to determine prevalence and risk factors of principal helminth infections in 1775 donkeys in 77 Italian farms. A questionnaire on management and parasite control practices was filled out for each farm. Faecal samples were examined using a modified McMaster technique, a centrifugation/flotation method and a sedimentation technique. Pooled coprocultures were performed for differentiation of strongylid eggs. Strongyles were the most common parasites detected (84.9%), followed by Dictyocaulus arnfieldi (6.9%), Oxyuris equi (5.8%), Parascaris spp. (3.6%), Anoplocephala spp. (1.0%), Strongyloides westeri (0.3%). Coprocultures revealed an omnipresence of cyathostomins (100%), followed by Strongylus vulgaris (31.0%), Poteriostomum spp. (25.0%), Triodontophorus spp. (9.0%), Strongylus edentatus (7.0%), Strongylus equinus (5.0%). Logistic regression analysis identified breed, co-pasture with horses, living area, herd size and number of treatments as significantly associated with strongyles. Sex, age, living area and herd size were significantly associated with Parascaris spp. Dictyocaulus arnfieldi was significantly associated with sex, grass, co-pasture with horses, living area and herd size. Strongylus vulgaris was significantly associated with living area and herd size. The mean number of anthelmintic treatments/year was 1.4; most of the donkeys (71.8%) were dewormed using an ivermectin drug. It is important to design parasite programs to specifically address both D. arnfieldi and S. vulgaris in donkeys, and this is especially important if donkeys co-graze with horses.

scholarly journals Dynamic Remote Sensing Prediction for Wheat Fusarium Head Blight by Combining Host and Habitat Conditions

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (18) ◽  
pp. 3046 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yingxin Xiao ◽  
Yingying Dong ◽  
Wenjiang Huang ◽  
Linyi Liu ◽  
Huiqin Ma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Fusarium Head Blight ◽  
Characteristic Curve ◽  
Relevance Vector Machine ◽  
Growth Stages ◽  
Habitat Conditions ◽  
Head Blight ◽  
Dynamic Prediction ◽  
Sensing Technology ◽  
Feasible Option

Remote sensing technology provides a feasible option for early prediction for wheat Fusarium head blight (FHB). This study presents a methodology for the dynamic prediction of this classic meteorological crop disease. Host and habitat conditions were comprehensively considered as inputs of the FHB prediction model, and the advantages, accuracy, and generalization ability of the model were evaluated. Firstly, multi-source satellite images were used to predict growth stages and to obtain remote sensing features, then weather features around the predicted stages were extracted. Then, with changes in the inputting features, the severity of FHB was dynamically predicted on February 18, March 6, April 23, and May 9, 2017. Compared to the results obtained by the Logistic model, the prediction with the Relevance Vector Machine performed better, with the overall accuracy on these four dates as 0.71, 0.78, 0.85, and 0.93, and with the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve as 0.66, 0.67, 0.72, and 0.75. Additionally, compared with the prediction with only one factor, the integration of multiple factors was more accurate. The results showed that when the date of the remote sensing features was closer to the heading or flowering stage, the prediction was more accurate, especially in severe areas. Though the habitat conditions were suitable for FHB, the infection can be inhibited when the host’s growth meets certain requirements.

scholarly journals Factors associated with the prevalence of helminths in Mangalarga Marchador horses in southern of Minas Gerais, Brazil

2018 ◽  
Vol 38 (6) ◽  
pp. 1097-1104
Author(s):  
Marina H.F. Rosa ◽  
Adriana M. Garcia ◽  
Débora O. Daher ◽  
Imara G. Lima ◽  
Marcelle B. Félix ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Laboratory Tests ◽  
Helminth Infection ◽  
Minas Gerais ◽  
Parasite Control ◽  
Horse Breed ◽  
Gastrointestinal Helminths ◽  
Factors Associated ◽  
Animal Management ◽  
Helminth Infections ◽  
Management Techniques

ABSTRACT: Horses are highly susceptible to parasitism. Helminth infections cause great harm to the animals and to their breeders. This study aimed at evaluating socioeconomic, cultural and management factors associated with the prevalence of gastrointestinal helminths of horses. A total of 40 farmas the Mangalarga Marchador horse breed were visited in southern Minas Gerais, Brazil, where interviews were conducted. Horse feces were collected on the farms and coproparasitological laboratory tests were conducted to quantify the infection and to identify parasites. Data were tabulated in Epidata and analyzed using the SPSS 20.0 software. A great similarity between breeds was observed, specifically in their profiles, as well as in their animal management techniques and in their parasite control habits. The cyathostome was the most prevalent helminth, followed by Oxyuris and large strongyles. The farms which prioritize only equine production are less likely to have animals with massive helminth infection.

Grazing livestock interactions with upland and montane biodiversity

2005 ◽  
Vol 2005 ◽  
pp. 67-67
Author(s):  
P. Dennis
Keyword(s):  
Leaf Litter ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Small Mammals ◽  
Nutritional Value ◽  
Passerine Birds ◽  
Botanical Composition ◽  
Domestic Livestock ◽  
Montane Biodiversity ◽  
Free Ranging ◽  
Grazing Livestock

Sheep and cattle interact with arthropods (e.g., insects and spiders) and small vertebrates (e.g., passerine birds and small mammals) directly and indirectly by the removal of vegetation during grazing, the trampling of vegetation and soil, and the deposition of excreta, associated with the redistribution of nutrients. The cold and wet upland and montane biotopes have low productivity, and grazing by free-ranging domestic livestock alters structure more than botanical composition of the vegetation in these biotopes over short periods (one to three years). In contrast to productive lowland or intensified upland pastures, upland and montane biotopes include patches of vegetation with a high proportion of leaf litter associated with plant species that are unpalatable or of poor nutritional value for grazers.

scholarly journals Assessing the usefulness of mineral licks containing herbal extracts with anti-parasitic properties for the control of gastrointestinal helminths in grazing sheep – a field trial

2016 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 180-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Nosal ◽  
M. Murawski ◽  
P. M. Bartlewski ◽  
J. Kowal ◽  
M. Skalska ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Field Trial ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Herbal Extracts ◽  
Parasite Control ◽  
Control Groups ◽  
Gastrointestinal Helminths ◽  
Helminth Infections ◽  
Mineral Licks ◽  
Ad Libitum ◽  
And Control

SummaryOne of the alternative methods of parasite control, of particular importance in sustainable farming, is the use of medicinal plants. The specific aim of the present field trial was to assess the anti-parasitic effects of herbal extracts contained in a commercially available lick formulation for sheep. At the outset of this study conducted during the grazing season, all animals were de-wormed and then randomly assigned to one of the two separately kept groups (treatment and control), each consisting of 25 animals (11 ewes and 14 lambs). The treatment group received mineral licks containing the extracts of the plants with anti-parasitic properties, while control animals received standard mineral licks ad libitum. Rectal fecal samples were collected monthly from all animals for the McMaster analyses. There were no significant differences in the prevalence and intensity of helminth infections between the treatment and control groups. Thus, we were not able to ascertain the efficacy of the commercial herbal de-wormer tested for the control of gastrointestinal helminths in grazing ewes and their lambs.

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