Prevalence and Magnitude of Intestinal Nematodes and Anthelmintic Efficacy against these Parasites in Chickens in Bishoftu, Ethiopia
No Thumbnail Available
Date
2025
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Addis Abeba University
Abstract
Poultry production is emerging as a highly developed sector of global food animal production. However intestinal nematode infection is one of significant challenges to the poultry industry due to their health, production and welfare impacts. A crosssectional study design was used to investigate the prevalence and magnitude of intestinal nematode infections in chickens kept under commercial and backyard production systems in the Bishoftu town from November 2024 to June 2025. For this purpose, layer, dual purpose chicken and broiler flocks were included. During sample collection, data such as poultry types, flock size, breed, and management systems were recorded. In addition, anthelminthic efficacy of piperazine and fenbendazole was evaluated. A pooled fecal sample was collected from 210 chicken farms for fecal egg counts and 115 gastrointestinal tracts of chickens were examined for worm counts. The overall prevalence of Ascarid eggs based on Mini FLOTAC technique was found to be 63.8%. Factors such as poultry types and flock management were found to have a statistically significant (p < 0.05) influence on the prevalence of the parasites. Similarly, significant differences (p<0.05) were found in the mean EPG across poultry types and breeds of the flocks. The mean worm counts were nearly similar in layer and dual-purpose chicken for A. galli and H. gallinarum worms, while broilers
harbour much lower worm counts. The anthelmintic test results showed that fenbendazole and piperazine are 100% effective at recommended dose via drinking water, indicating that anthelmintic resistance is not concern in the study area. In conclusion, this study strongly suggested that A. galli and H. gallinarum is highly prevalent, which might impact the productivity of the chickens. Therefore, it is essential to implement effective control measures and maintain regular deworming with effective anthelmintics such as fenbendazole and piperazine in poultry farms, to manage intestinal nematodes based on infection intensity.
Description
Keywords
Bishoftu, Infection intensity, Intestinal nematodes, Poultry, Prevalence