Abstract

Faecal sample from 654 adult goats were evaluated to assess the effect of climate on the epidemiolocal profile of gastro-intestinal strongyles in goats of Kerala. The climatic observations revealed the existance of a suitable period for translation of exogenous stages of major strongyles like Haemonchus contortus, Trichostrongylus sp.,Oesophagostomum sp. and Bunostomum sp. from end of May to middle of September and again from early October to middle of November. The influence of season and month on the strongylosis in goats was found to be highly significant as remarkably higher incidence of strongyle infection in goats was detected during monsoon compared to pre- monsoon and post- monsoon. Thus, there are wide scope to reduce drench frequency, unnecessary expense on worm management and conserve the anthelmintic efficacy among our livestock.

Keywords : Climate, Epidemiology , Strongylosis , Kerala, Goat