A participatory epidemiological study was conducted with cattle keepers in Jimma zone, Ethiopia, between October 2018 and October 2019 to identify the causes of abortion in cattle. Data collection involved 20 group discussions (each comprising 8–12 people) in 10 peasant associations. Methods used in group discussions included semi-structured interviews, pairwise ranking, matrix scoring, proportional piling, and seasonal calendar. The result of pairwise ranking identified brucellosis, leptospirosis, listeriosis, trypanosomosis, and Foot and mouth disease (FMD) in decreasing order as the most important causes of abortion in cattle. Mechanical or physical agents were also identified as less important non-infectious causes of cattle abortion in study areas. A very strong agreement (W = 0.880; P < 0.001) was observed among informant groups in pairwise ranking as to the most important cause of cattle abortion in study areas. Proportional piling showed that brucellosis was responsible for the highest proportion of abortions (39.9%) followed by leptospirosis (22.5%) and listeriosis (16.3%). A lesser proportion of abortion was attributed to trypanosomosis and FMD which comprise 11.6% and 9.7%, respectively. Matrix scoring showed strong agreement (W = 0.572 to 0.898; p < 0.001) concerning causes of abortion and its clinical signs between informant groups. According to the discussants, brucellosis and FMD tend to occur more frequently in the winter and spring seasons whereas listeriosis and trypanosomosis occurred frequently in the summer and autumn seasons, respectively. Strong agreement was observed among informant groups about the seasonal pattern of occurrence causes of abortion (W = 0.525–0.794; P < 0.001). Participants used medicinal plants and other traditional practices to manage cattle abortion in their areas. Farmers' knowledge should be incorporated to investigate health problems of unknown causes, designing, and implementing the intervention program in the areas.

Bovine brucellosis is a serious zoonotic infectious disease with widespread occurrence in developing countries like Ethiopia. A cross-sectional study was conducted from November 2017 to November 2018 to investigate the prevalence and associated risk factors of brucellosis in breeding female cattle under the traditional production system of the Jimma zone in Ethiopia. Blood samples were collected from a total of 423 breeding female cattle to test the presence of Brucella antibody. The presence of antibody against Brucella spp. was serially tested first by the Rose Bengal Plate test, then positive sera were confirmed using the complement fixation test. Potential risk factors for Brucella seropositivity were analyzed using multivariable logistic regression analysis. An overall 11.6% (95%CI: 6.25 – 16.94) and 4.3% (95%CI: 2.15–5.89) seroprevalence of brucellosis was recorded at herd and animal level, respectively in study areas. We identified age (OR=9.6, 95% CI: 2.08–44.07), breed (OR=4.5, 95%CI: 1.54–12.99), herd size (OR=10.4, 95%CI: 1.27–85.04) and species composition (OR=4.4, 95%CI: 1.31–14.89) as risk factors for Brucella infection. Herd level analysis of risk factor shows that herds kept with sheep and/goats was at higher risk (OR=3.7, 95% CI: 1.25–11.17) of acquired Brucella infection. This result showed that brucellosis was a widely spread disease in the study areas. Thus, important to carry out appropriate control methods and creating awareness on public zoonotic transmissions of brucellosis are recommended. Moreover, further investigation should be carried out to isolate and characterized brucellosis as a cause of reproduction problems in the study areas.

Background: Abortion, causes by several infectious and non-infectious factors is one of the most critical health problems of cattle in Ethiopia. Thus, this study aimed to assess knowledge and perception of the community about potential causes of abortion and case-control study of brucellosis as a cause of abortion in cattle of study districts. Methods:A cross-sectional study was conducted between October 2016 and October 2017 in selected districts of the Jimma zone using a questionnaire survey. Based on the questionnaire survey, we also carried out a case-control study (141 cases and 282 controls) to confirm whether the most frequently mentioned disease (brucellosis) is associated with abortion. The blood samples were collected from both cases and controls cattle groups and then serum was separated. The presence of antibody against Brucella organism in serum was first tested by Rose Bengal Plate Test (RBPT) and all RBPT positive samples were confirmed using the Complement Fixation Test (CFT).Results: From a total of 180 randomly selected respondents, the majority (59.4%) of them attributed abortion to infectious diseases. Based on the questionnaire survey, brucellosis, leptospirosis and listeriosis were identified as the major infectious causes of abortion in the areas. Physical injuries, shortage of feed and toxic substances were observed as less important non-infection causes of abortion in the study areas. This study also identified improper disposal of aborted materials and birth products, use of communal bulls, sharing communal grazing areas and water sources which favour disease transmission. Exposure to Brucella organism was higher among cases (6.4%) than controls (2.8%) with a statistically significant difference (p = 0.042). Conclusion:Brucellosis is the most important infectious cause of cattle abortion in this study. Thus, important to conduct appropriate control methods and increasing public awareness of the zoonotic transmission of brucellosis are suggested. This finding also recommended the need for further study to isolate and characterise brucellosis as a cause of abortion in cattle.

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Trypanosomiasis is an impediment to cattle production and other agricultural development in tsetse-infested areas. It is a severe parasitic disease that causes loss in the production and performance of cattle. Hence, the aim of this paper is to review trypanosomiasis control options with emphasis on the use of trypanotolerant Sheko cattle breed for sustainable management of bovine trypanosomiasis in tsetse infested areas. Several methods have been used to control trypanosomiasis through the use of trypanocidal drugs and the management of the vector, tsetse fly. Tsetse fly controls require expensive insecticides and have adverse environmental consequences. Trypanocidal drugs are commonly used and considered a practical trypanosomiasis control method. However, the rise in trypanocidal drug resistance has rendered this option ineffective. The possibility of developing and using a vaccine against trypanosomiasis currently remains out of reach as Trypanosoma periodically undergo antigenic variation. In the absence of a vaccine, presence of trypanocidal drug resistance, and the lack of sustainable tsetse fly control measures demand the need to use trypanotole-rant cattle breeds. The Sheko breed which is found only in southwestern Ethiopia displays considerable natural resistance to tsetse-transmitted trypanosomiasis. This genetic resource provides sustainable solution for challenges related to trypanosomiasis. These cattle have a low level of parasitemia and are able to maintain a good packed cell volume (PCV) compared to other indigenous breeds. As several trypanosomiasis control methods are ineffective, the use of trypanotolerance cattle like Sheko breed in tsetse-fly-challenged areas was suggested.