Surveys of Gastrointestinal Parasites of Sus scrofa domesticus (Domestic Pig) in Ushongo Local Government Area, Benue State, Nigeria.

Abstract

Gastrointestinal parasites are responsible for substantial loss of productivity in livestock production. This study was carried out with the aim of determining the prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites of pigs in Ushongo LGA of Benue State, Nigeria over a period of three months Four hundred fecal samples were collected from the rectum of pigs and screened using the simple tube floatation and tube sedimentation techniques. An overall prevalence of 33.5% was observed. A total of 9 parasite species were isolated. Ascaris, Fasciola, Taenia solium, Trichuris suis, Hymenolepsis, Isospora suis, Strongyloides, Eimeria Spp and Hookworm had a prevalence of 24.17%,16.48%, 19.78%, 6.59%, 1.09%, 3.29%, 18.69%, 6.59%, 3.29%respectively.This study reveals that gastrointestinal parasites are relatively low in Ushongo L.G.A. Further investigation should be carried out to study the impact of parasitic infestation of pigs on public health in the study area.