FAQ ON PARASITIC INFESTATION IN ANIMALS
Q.1 :
What are various types of parasites affecting animals?
A :
Type of parasite
Name of parasite
Animals affected
I.H./Vector
Trematodes (Flukes)
Fasciola sp. (Liver fluke)
Amphistome sp. (Rumen fluke)
Prosthogonimus sp. (Oviductal fluke)
Cow, Buffalo, Sheep, Goat, Poultry
Through snails etc
Cestodes (Tapeworms)
Moniezia sp., Stilesia sp., Dipylidium caninum, Raillietina sp., Taenia sp. etc.
Cow, Buffalo, Sheep Goat, Dogs, Poultry
Through grain mites,
beetles ants, flies, earthworm
etc
Nematodes (Roundworms) Toxocara sp., Strongyles, Strongyloides sp. Ascaridia galli, Oxyuris sp. etc. Cow, Buffalo, Sheep, Goat, Dogs, Poultry Contaminated feed and water and arthropods Blood protozoa Trypanosoma evansi Cow, Buffalo, Horse, Dogs Through flies Blood protozoa Babesia sp. Cow, Buffalo, Horse, Dogs Through hard tick Blood protozoa Theileria annulata Cow, Buffalo Through hard tick Blood protozoa Anaplasma marginale Cow, Buffalo Through flies, hard tick Blood protozoa Ehrlichia sp., Hepatozoon canis Dog Through hard tick Intestinal protozoa Coccidia Cow, Buffalo, Sheep, Goat, Dogs, Poultry Contaminated feed and water Arthropods Hard tick, soft tick, flies, lice, fleas, mites Cow, Buffalo, Sheep, Goat, Dogs, Poultry
Q.2 :
What are the common symptoms of parasitic diseases?
A :
Reduced or no feed and water intake, dullness, rough body coat, fever, diarrhea, loss of production (milk, meat/wool etc.), and presence of vectors/intermediate hosts.
Q.3 :
How to diagnose these various parasitic diseases?
A :
For diagnosis of the parasitic infections/infestations examination of faecal, blood and skin scrapings is necessary. This should be done in a well equipped laboratory viz. Department of Veterinary Parasitology (Ph.: 0161-2414029) and Clinical Diagnostic Laboratory, Teaching Veterinary Clinical Complex (Ph.: 0161-2414052).
Q.4 :
How to send the samples for diagnosis of various parasitic diseases?
A :
Blood should be sent well mixed in EDTA or methanol fixed blood smear can be sent; faeces should be sent in 10% formalin and skin scrapings in 10% potassium hydroxide solution. With any one of the above sample, information like type of animal; age of animal; sex of animal; clinical symptoms etc should be provided.
Q.5 :
What are the clinical signs of (surra) and what is the causative organism?
A :
Surra is caused by a blood protozoa, Trypanasoma evansi and the signs are as follows: Horse: Intermittent fever, emaciation, oedema varying from urticarial plaques on the neck and flanks to legs and lower parts of the body, haemorrhages at the junction of skin and mucus membrane especially at nostrils, eyes and anus. Dogs: Fever, marked oedema, corneal opacity, change in voice and death. Cows and Buffaloes: Dullness, sleepiness, rise in temperature may be seen, staggering gait, eyes staring wide open, hard and noisy breathing, circling movements, nervous excitement, hitting of head against hard objects, apparent blindness, stamping of feet, bellowing, groaning, frequent micturition, profuse salivation, muscle twitching, shivering of body and coma and death.
Q.6 :
What are the clinical signs of babesiosis and red water fever?
A :
Cows and Buffaloes: High grade fever, haemoglobinuria, profound anaemia and profuse diarrhoea followed by marked constipation and death. Horses: High grade fever, anaemia, listlessness, depression, haemoglobinuria (may be present or absent) and posterior paralysis (may be present or absent) and death. Dogs: High grade fever, malaise, listlessness, depression, disinclination to move, anorexia, jaundice and pale mucus membranes and death.
Q.7 :
What are the clinical signs of Theileriosis?
A :
Cows and Buffaloes: Marked rise in temperature, depression, emaciation, lacrymation, nasal discharge and swelling of superficial lymph nodes and death.
Q.8 :
What are the clinical signs of Anaplasmosis?
A :
Anorexia, high fever, jaundice, severe anaemia, dysponea and death.
Q.9 :
What are the important signs of coccidiosis?
A :
Sheep and goats: Young animals up to the age of 4-6 months are affected; brownish to yellowish green diarrhoea which may be streaked with blood, abdominal pain, anaemia, inappetence, weakness and loss of weight and death.
Cows and Buffaloes: Young animals up to the age of 3 weeks to 6 months are affected; abdominal pain, foul smelling diarrhoea with or without blood and masses of mucus and clots of blood, rough coat, droopy ears, listlessness, partial paralysis of anal sphincter, weakness, rectal tenesmus, anaemia, anorexia, rapid respiration, convulsions and emaciation and death.
Dogs: Pups are severely affected; there is weakness, rough hair coat, emaciation and diarrhea with or without blood and death.
Poultry: Diarrhoea with or without blood and mucus casts, stunted growth, decline in egg production, listlessness, anorexia, anaemia, dehydration and death.
Q.10 :
What are the measures to control snail borne diseases?
A :
Ponds/lakes etc. should be cleaned from time to time and fenced.
Animals should not be allowed to drink water from snail contaminated ponds/lakes etc.
Dung of animals should be put in dung pits, to destroy the eggs of trematode parasites.
Number of snails can be reduced by fishes, crabs, ducks etc. which feed on these snails.
Herbal control by plant extracts of Neem, Aak, Datura and Safeda etc.
Chemicals like sodium pentachlorophenate, copper sulphate etc. can be used.
Q.11 :
What are general measures to control parasitic diseases?
A :
Provide clean water and good quality fodder to animals
Maintain good hygienic conditions in the shed as regular and proper cleaning of the shed
Isolation of the diseased animal from the healthy ones and their proper treatment.
Giving periodic preventive medication to all apparently healthy animals
Vaccination may be done.
Control the intermediate hosts/vectors in the life cycle of parasites using suitable drugs.
Q.12 :
How do the arthropods harm the animals?
A :
Annoyance, blood loss, lower hide value, myiasis, skin inflammation, allergy, production losses, and act as vectors of economically important infectious diseases.
Q.13 :
What is myiasis?
A :
Myiasis is an animal disease caused by parasitic dipterous fly larvae feeding on the host’s necrotic or living tissue.
Q.14 :
What are the common ways to control myiasis?
A :
Control the population of adult flies.
Eliminate the larvae by applying pressure around the lesion and use of forceps.
The wound must be cleaned and dressed.
Treat livestock with the use of slow release boluses containing ivermectin which can provide long term protection against the larvae development.
Q.15 :
How to control tick infestation in animals?
A :
Application of acaricides like amitraz, malathion, flumethrin, cypermethrin, pestoben etc after consulting with a qualified veterinarian.
Q.16 :
What is mange?
A :
Mange is a contagious skin disease caused by parasitic mites. Commonly sarcoptic, psoroptic and demodectic (or red mange) mange is seen in cattle, buffalo, sheep, goat, dog etc.
Q.17 :
How to control mange?
A :
Isolate the affected animals from other animals
Thoroughly clean their bedding and sheds.
Treat the affected animals by chemotherapy viz use of ivermectin, topical application of formamidines etc is effective.
Q.18 :
What is pediculosis?
A :
The term pediculosis is used to denote lice infestation in animals and birds.
Q.19 :
What are the effects of lice on their hosts?
A :
Irritation, restlessness, self inflicted injury, reduced feeding, inappropriate sleep and production loss.
Q.20 :
How to control pediculosis?
A :
In poultry, control is achieved by dusts or sprays of carbaryl or coumaphos, toxaphene, hexachlorocyclohexane, melathion etc. In cattle or large ruminants, crotoxyphos, coumaphos, cruformate, farphur, ronnel, cypermethrin, malathion etc spray is effective.
Q.21 :
What are the parasitic diseases transmitted by fleas?
A :
Fleas act as vector the diseases like Dipylium caninum, Dipetalonema reconditum etc.
Q.22 :
How to control fleas?
A :
Flea collars are very popular means of control. A combination of dichlorovos and fenitrothion is effective for dogs. Hexachlorocyclohexane is useful in dogs. Corticosteroids may be used to reduce pruritus in animal.
Q.23 :
What is Ehrlichiosis?
A :
Ehrlichiosis is caused by Ehrlichia caves in dog. The pet show the symptom of fever, other non specific symptom, epistaxis,nasal bleeding. Have bllod examination and contact your Vet for treatment.
Reference-On Request
