Abstract:
Parasitism in small
ruminants
remains a great threat to the advancement of the livestock industry in most tropical
countries. This study is aimed at appending and updating current liter
ature on prevalence of parasitic diseases of
small ruminants (sheep and goat) prevalent in Osun
state
, southwest Nigeria. A ten
-
year data (2006
–
2015)
involving 321 sheep and 1,210 goats was analysed. Helminthoses (78.8% in sheep; 52.9% in goats) and mange
(18.4% in sheep; 49.6% in goats) were the most prevalent parasitic diseases affecting sheep and goats and they
occurred all the year round. Other parasitic diseases diagnosed during this period were babesiosis, tick infestation,
myiasis, lice infestation,
flea infestation, anaplasmosis,
coccidiosis and trypanosomiasis.
It was observed that age
and sex were associated with parasitic diseases in sheep, while it was age and seasons in goats. This study shows
that parasitic diseases are common among small rumi
nants in the
state
.
