Prevalence of Natural Gastrointestinal Helminth Infection of Thai Indigenous Chickens Aged 12–18 Weeks in Small–Scale Chicken Farms on River Plains in Central Thailand
Prevalence of Natural Gastrointestinal Helminth Infection of Thai Indigenous Chickens Aged 12–18 Weeks in Small–Scale Chicken Farms on River Plains in Central Thailand
Kunlayaphat Wuthijaree1, Pattaraporn Tatsapong1, Sukanya Yung-Rahang2, Prayad Thirawong2, Koonphol Pongmanee2*
ABSTRACT
Helminth infection is one of the health problems in backyard chickens and is detrimental to productivity performance. This study evaluated the prevalence and average number of gastrointestinal parasites per chicken (worm burden) in Thai indigenous chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus). A total of, 229 chickens (113 males and 116 females) were investigated in 3 selected districts in central Thailand. Chickens were raised under extensive backyard conditions and then slaughtered at ages 12, 14, 16 and 18 weeks. Standard parasitological procedures were used to determine the worm burden in the gastrointestinal tracts. The R software application was used to compute and assess all descriptive and analytical statistics. Based on post-mortem examination of the gastrointestinal tracts, the helminths identified, three nematode species (Ascaridia galli, Heterakis gallinarum, Capillaria spp.), and cestodes and trematodes were found. Overall, the total prevalence of helminth infection was 79.9% (183/229), of which most were nematodes (72.1%), with a mean (± standard deviation) burden of 7.41 ± 12.81 (ranging from 0 to 78) worms per chicken. The most common helminth species identified in the examined Thai indigenous chickens were nematodes H. gallinarum (70.3%) and A. galli (14.8%). A prevalence rate of 34.5% for cestodes was observed. There was no statistically significant difference in the prevalence of helminth infections among male and female chickens. The prevalence of natural helminthic infections increases with chicken age. The results revealed that most Thai native chickens reared in backyard environments have subclinical infections with at least one helminth species.
Keywords | Helminth, Worm burden, Infection intensity, Indigenous chicken
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April 2024
Vol. 12, Iss. 4, pp. 586-801
