Status of Eimeria infections of sheep and goat sold at small ruminant markets in Lagos State, Southwest, Nigeria

Abstract

Coccidiosis, an intestinal disease caused by apicomplexan parasites of the genus Eimeria, continues to challenge profitable small ruminant production worldwide. This study was carried out to determine the occurrence of Eimeria and identify the species infecting sheep and goat sold at small ruminant markets in Lagos State. Fresh faeces were collected from 83 sheep and 51 goats. The faecal samples were grossly examined for their consistency and subjected to salt floatation to detect the presence of Eimeria oocysts. Morphometric measurements of oocysts were taken for species identification. The number of oocysts/ml of faeces were estimated using a haemocytometer. Results revealed that 67 (80.7%) sheep and 34 (66.7%) goats were positive for Eimeria. There was no difference in the prevalence of infection between male and female of both animals (P > 0.05). The difference in infection rates between the breeds of sheep were also insignificant (P > 0.05). Goats with diarrheic stool had higher faecal oocyst counts (20400 oocysts/ml) when compared to those with normal stool (5250 oocysts/ml). E. faurei (41%), E. ovinoidalis (36%) and E. intricata (31%) were the most common of the 11 species infecting sheep in this study. Of the 8 species recovered from goats, E. ninakhloyakimovae (51%) and E. alijevi (39%) were the most frequent. The high incidence of pathogenic Eimeria species detected in the study area poses serious economic risks to stakeholders in Lagos State and Nigeria at large. Small ruminant farmers and traders are advised to improve biosecurity and sanitary conditions where livestock are kept. Keywords: Eimeria parasites; coccidiosis; goats; sheep; small ruminant markets; Nigeria.