Analysis of the productive and immune response of lambs infected with gastrointestinal nematodes and fed with saccharin

Abstract

Objective: To determine the productive traits and immune response in Blackbelly lambs infected with gastrointestinal nematodes (GIN) fed with saccharin.

Design / methodology / approach: Three treatments (T) were randomly assigned to 18 Blackbelly lambs, with an initial live weight (LW) of 13.9 + 3.2 kg. In T1 anthelmintic + base diet (CTah) was used; T2 without anthelmintic + base diet (STah) and T3 were grazing lambs without anthelmintic (STPS). The experimental design was completely randomized with measures repeated over time and the averages of the treatments were compared using Lsmeans. Evaluations included live weight (LW), egg per gram of feces (EPG), packed cell volume (PCV), total plasma protein (TPP), differential leukocyte count (WBC), and IgA level by ELISA with Haemonchus contortus and Trichostrongylus colubriformis antigens

Results: The STah and CTah lambs showed a higher number of EPG (885 ± 142) and LW (29.73 ± 5.06 kg). While grazing lambs (STPS) showed the lowest PCV (26.4 ± 0.5%) compared to STah and CTah lambs (27.4 to 28.4%), caused by the high prevalence of H. contortus. The IgA level in grazing lambs was from 20.2 to 24.5% with respect to the positive standard, RPS, while the stabled lambs (STah and CTah) showed values ??close to 5% RPS.

Study limitations / implications: Due to anthelmintic resistance problems, it was not possible to keep lambs free of infection in grazing, so this group was not included.

Findings / conclusions: Feeding with saccharin allows increasing the resilience of sheep and achieving adequate weight gains in parasitized lambs