Influence of season, age and breed on prevalence of haemoprotozoan diseases in cattle of Tamil Nadu, India

Materials and Methods Haemoprotozoan infections are very common in cattle and cause devastating losses to the livestock industry and pose a major threat to the dairy industry throughout the world [1]. Most of the haemoprotozoan parasites are transmitted by ticks and is of great economic importance in Asia and has always been a formidable barrier to the survival of exotic and cross bred cattle in India [2]. The hot and humid climate is very conducive for the development and survival of potential vectors such as ticks and flies and is a constant source of infection to susceptible animals [3]. Theileriosis, babesiosis and anaplasmosis are the three major tick borne haemoprotozoan diseases of crossbred cattle in tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world [4, 5, 6]. In India, the annual loss estimated due to tropical theileriosis alone is approximately US $ 800 million [7]. In the absence of adequate control measures, these haemoprotozoan diseases have serious economic impact on cattle production in terms of mortality, reduced milk yield and lowered draft power.