A cross-sectional study was conducted to estimate magnitude of small ruminant ectoparasite infestation in Sodo Zuria district from November, 2013 to March, 2014. Out of the total 758 small ruminants, 51.5% sheep and 48.9 % goats were found infected with ectoprasite infestation (p=0.471). Standard identification of 383 ectoprasite specimens demonstrated ticks (34.6%), lice (7.1%), fleas (6.1%) and mange mites (2.8%). Tick and flea infestation were predominant in sheep (p<0.01) whereas mange mite infestations was more common in goats (p < 0.01). The tick species observed, in order of importance, were Ripicephalus evertsi eversti, Amblyoma variegatum, Boophilus decoloratus, Amblyoma coherences and Ripicephalus pulchellus (exclusive to sheep). The flea species observed were Ctenocephalides felis and Ctenocephalides canis. Regarding mange mites, Sarcoptus scabie was more frequent and affected both sheep and goats whereas Demodex caprea was found only in goats. Among lice species identified, Linognatus ovilluis and Damalina ovis were higher in sheep whereas Linognatus stenopsis was more common in goats (p<0.05). Generally, female animals were affected by ectoparasites more frequently (56 %) than males (44.4%) (p=0.001). Small ruminants older than one year (53.8%) were affected more frequently than younger animals (45.8%) (p=0.029). Ectoparasite infestation was more frequent in animals with poor body condition (59%) than those having medium (41.9%) and good (43.6%) body condition (p=0.000). Small ruminant flocks in Sodo Zuria district were widely affected by ectoparasite infestation which leads to substantial morbidity. Effort to raise awareness of farm households and improve control services is recommended.
Tick infestation is considered to be a major concern as ticks cause widespread distress, act as vectors of disease and affect the economic conditions of livestock-rearing. Although the use of chemicals is still the most effective method of tick control, uncontrolled applications may have accelerated the emergence of tick resistance to several active ingredients available. The present work estimated the efficacy of two commonly used acaricides (amitraz and diazinon) against Rhipicephalus pulchellus and Hyalomma dromedarii collected from Camelus dromedarius by using in vitro and in vivo field trial methods. The in vitro test employed a preliminary immersion technique and the field trial involved a manual application of the acaricides on camels predominantly infested with both tick species under field condition. Three groups of camels (I, II and III) containing six head of animals each with a mean number of >20 tick counts received diazinon, amitraz and distilled water, respectively. The in vitro assay showed no statistically significant tickicidal difference (p>0.05) between these compounds although amitraz proved a relatively better efficacy. For both acaricides, doubled concentration was more effective in tick killing. The field trial evidenced that both drugs caused a significant reduction (p<0.05) in mean tick count when compared to the negative control. However, amitraz showed a significant superiority (p<0.05) as compared to diazinon (85.2%) eliminating almost all ticks from the body of infested camels 72 h post treatment with 99.1% efficacy. Whereas, the maximum antiparasitic efficacy brought about by diazinon was 85.2% after 72 h of application. In conclusion, comparing the efficacy of the two acaricides from these preliminary tests, amitraz is the preferable one. Furthermore, right application and choice of acaricides needs to be pursued in order to avoid any resistance against ticks in camels.
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