AGRICULTURE NEWS - Internal parasites can cause severe economic losses for sheep farmers in South Africa.
In the country’s winter rainfall region, the most important of these parasites, according to Drs Gareth Bath and Jan de Wet, are the brown stomach worm (Teladorsagia circumcincta), tapeworm (Moniezia spp.), liver fluke (Fasciola hepatica), and the long-necked bankrupt worm (Nematodirus spathiger and N. filicollis).
In the summer rainfall region, the most important internal parasites are wireworm (Haemonchus contortus), tapeworm, bankrupt worm, and liver fluke.
It’s essential for farmers to treat these parasites with effective registered medicines, but the parasites’ resistance to available treatments is a growing concern around the world.
Thus, farmers are advised to implement prevention methods to lower parasite loads on their farms, such as the effective quarantining of infected animals.
