Epidemiology of Gastrointestinal Parasites of Ruminants in Western Oromia, Ethiopia

A study was conducted to determine the prevalence and risk factors associated with gastrointestinal parasitism in western Oromia during 2003–2004. A total of 757 ruminants (257 cattle, 255 sheep, and 245 goats) were included in the study using standard coprologic parasitological procedure. The study showed that the overall prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites was 69.6% with 50.2%, 75.3%, and 84.1% in cattle, sheep, and goats, respectively. Strongyles and Eimeria were the most prevalent parasites encountered in the area. A statistically significant difference was found in prevalence and egg output (eggs per gram; EPG) among species of animals considered. A higher rate was recovered in small ruminants than in cattle, and a greater proportion of study animals (77.3%) had low EPG compared with study animals with moderate to severe EPG (22.7%). Agroecology was found to be associated with Intern J Appl Res Vet Med • Vol. 4, No. 1. 2006 Intern J Appl Res Vet Med • Vol. 4, No. 1. 2006 52 tinue to incur significant losses due to insufficient availability of information on the epidemiology of the parasites. Furthermore, parasitosis appears to be a major factor for lowered productivity of Ethiopian livestock sector. The prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites, the genera of helminth parasites involved, species, and the severity of infection also vary considerably depending on local environmental conditions, such as humidity, temperature, rainfall, vegetation, and management practices. Therefore, the distribution and prevalence of the disease should be presented by geographical areas that could roughly correspond to climatic conditions. In some parts of Ethiopia, surveys have been carried out on prevalence of helminth parasites of which most of the information obtained is from abattoir survey and animals managed in stations. Moreover, there is no sufficient information on epidemiology of the gastrointestinal parasites of ruminant farm animals in the western part of the country where mixed crop-livestock production system is the main form of agriculture. Therefore, the current study was performed to determine the prevalence of gastrointestinal parasite in ruminants in western Oromia to obtain baseline data so as to design effective control options. In this study, an attempt was made to identify agro-ecological factors; species of ruminants affected in that production systems; and management practices that are assumed to be associated with parasitosis. MATERIALS AND METHOD