Trypanosomosis among sheep and goats at slaughter in Jos abattoir, Nigeria

Abstract

The prevalence of trypanosomosis in Yankasa sheep and Red Sokoto goats was studied by blood examination at the municipal abattoir of Jos, Central Nigeria, during the months of March-August, 1990. Blood samples were collected from 522 sheep and 601 goats and examined by buffy coat and stained smear methods. Twenty (3.83%) sheep and eleven (1.83%) goats were infected with trypanosomes. Trypanosoma vivax and Trypanosoma congolense were the only trypanosomes encountered in the study. T. vivax was found in 15 (2.87%) and 7 (1.16%) of the sheep and goats, respectively. T. congolense was found in 5 (0.97%) and 4 (0.67%) of the sheep and goats, respectively. The infection was higher during the wet season than during the dry season, but the difference was not statistically significant (P < 0.05). It is desirable that sheep and goats be included in any therapeutic or prophylactic programme for trypanosomosis control.