Traditional Wisdom in Animal Health: Ethnoveterinary Practices in the Indigenous Communities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

Abstract

Abstract Background Local and indigenous communities of the Jandool Valley, Dir Lower District, in Northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, rely on ethnoveterinary herbal formulations to treat their domestic animals. Insights into the indigenous uses of local botanical flora can direct investigation into phytochemical screening. The present research is carried out with the aim of documenting ethnoveterinary expertise concerning various plant species used by the local population of the area for the curing of various animal diseases and ailments. Ethnoveterinary statistics were acquired by carrying out many discipline tours, questionnaires, and open-ended and semi structured discussions. The ethnoveterinary data quantitatively considered the use of the directory informant compromise aspect. Results Results show 50 types of medicinal plants belonging to 33 plant families were stated to be used in traditional medicine. Lamiaceae, with 5 species, is the foremost family, accompanied by Apiaceae and Solaneceae. The primary source of ethnoveterinary care was herb (52%), followed by shrubs and trees, respectively. For the natural formulation, leaves (28%) were the most frequent elements, and 34% of ethnomedicine was administered orally, while decoction was the principal procedure of herbal preparation, followed by crushing (26%), powder (22%), direct crude drug (12%), and paste (2%), respectively. Conclusions The different plant varieties used by the native community in vast numbers for therapeutic functions indicated that Jandool Valley possesses a rich flora of medicinal plants and similar traditional information. This demonstrates that the local people of the area rely on traditional practices and crude drugs to treat livestock diseases. This effort can be used as the basis for future ethnomedical or ethnoveterinary studies.