Ethno-veterinary control of parasites, management and role of village chickens in rural households of Centane district in the Eastern Cape, South Africa

Abstract

Mwale and Masika 2009 Ethno-veterinary control of parasites, management and role of village chickens in rural households of Centane district in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. Tropical Animal Health and Production. Village chickens contribute significantly towards rural livelihood in the African continent through the provision of animal protein, income and socio-cultural uses. However, village chickens are susceptible to parasite infestation. Due to limitations of using western drugs to control these parasites, farmers resort to the use of ethno-veterinary medicine (EVM). However, there is dearth of information on EVM use in chickens. Therefore, the objective of the current study was to document various EVM practices used in controlling gastro-intestinal parasites in village chickens. Stratified random sampling was used to select 62 chicken farmers that were interviewed using a structured questionnaire About 70 and 96.7% of farmers provided housing and water for their chickens respectively whereas the rest did not. The chief role of chickens was meat provision (91.7%). Most households (86%) reported parasite problems in chickens, particularly gastro-intestinal parasites. Eighty-three percent of the interviewed respondents use medicinal plants to control both internal and external parasites in chickens. Use of plants increased with parasite incidences (r=0.347; P<0.01). Mainly gastro-intestinal parasites were problematic and were largely controlled by medicinal plants. Further research on pharmacological properties, safety and efficacy of these plants is important for improved chicken productivity and hence rural livelihood.

Farmer perceptions on the use of non-conventional animal protein sources for scavenging chickens in semi-arid environments

“…The high ranking of chickens for human consumption agrees with Mwale and Masika (2009) who reported that the purpose of keeping chicken was mainly for meat in Centane district, Eastern Cape. Village chickens can be slaughtered easily and can be consumed in one meal without need for refrigeration.…”

“…Unground rotten maize grain was the main supplementary feed given to chicken as also observed in other parts of South Africa (Naidoo, 2003;Mwale and Masika, 2009;Nyoni and Masika 2012). Maize is available in large quantities during harvesting and threshing periods (Mtileni et al, 2013).…”

Characterization of indigenous chicken production systems in Kenya

“…This may help increase the flock size and performances of the chicken, especially in the ASALs. Health management has been reported as the major challenge faced by farmers in developing countries (Mwale and Masika 2009;Kaingu et al 2010). The seasonal outbreak of diseases, especially Newcastle disease and fowl typhoid observed in this study, has also been reported to cause high mortalities elsewhere (Dana et al 2010;Moreki 2010;Yakubu 2010).…”

“…chickens can be vaccinated during dry seasons so that they develop immunity before the outbreaks in the wet seasons. Before such vaccination programmes are put in place, farmers may continue using ethno-veterinary medicine such Aloe secundiflora and Aloe ferox (Mwale and Masika 2009;Kaingu et al 2010) to treat and control diseases. Dependency on herbs, however, may be short-lived because of climate change and loss of local indigenous knowledge through generations.…”

In vitro Anthelmintic Efficacy of Medicinal Plants against Heterakis gallinarum in Village Chickens

“…This is apt as the smallholder farmers are endowed with invaluable indigenous knowledge for controlling GI parasites in livestock (Moreki, 2012). As such, medicinal plants such as Aloe ferox, Agave sisalana and Gunnera perpensa are used by the rural communities in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa to control GI parasites in village chickens, especially H. gallinarum (Mwale & Masika, 2009). The communities believe that plants are effective and have no side effects.…”