Occurrence of gastrointestinal parasites in slaughter rabbits

The aim of the study was to determine the occurrence of gastrointestinal parasites in slaughter rabbits managed in small scale farms and under industrial farming system. The research material included intestines and livers of rabbits slaughtered between years 2007 and 2011. The rabbit carcasses submitted to parasitological examination had passed the sanitary veterinary inspection as fit for human consumption. The samples were collected in spring and autumn seasons. The studies showed no effect of a rabbit farming system, season of the year, or differences in an invasion type in each year. The parasitological test recognized exclusively mixed infestation diagnosed in 79.56 % of the studied animals. Parasitological evaluation of the rabbit internal organs identified the invasions of coccidia (78.83 %), nematoda (16.42 %), cestoda (0.72 %), and cysticerci Cysticercus pisiformis (4.74 %). Coccidian invasions found in intestines were dominant, and their prevalence reached 56.48 %, while the hepatic coccidian extensity was markedly lower, i.e., 3.34 % of the examined rabbits. Invasions were characterized by low intensity. The studies recognized invasions of nematoda (Obeliscoides cuniculi, Graphidium strigosum, Trichostrongylus sp., Strongyloides sp., Passalurus ambiguus, Trichuris leporis), cestoda (Mosgovoyia pectinata), and cysticerci C. pisiformis.