Laboratory studies with some recent anticoccidials

Abstract

The activities of monensin, lasalocid and halofuginone against Eimeria tenella, E. brunetti and E. necatrix have been studied under laboratory conditions. Complete control of experimental infections in the chick, separable from toxicity, was not obtained with monensin, but was achieved with the other two compounds at levels of 150 and 6 ppm in the food respectively. All three compounds appear to inhibit coccidial development very early in the life-cycle, and to have a fairly rapid lethal effect, monensin and lasalocid more so than the febrifugine derivative. In vivo observations have been supplemented with in vitro studies. Some discussion of the difficulties of relating laboratory experiments to field performance is given.