Study on Strongyle Infection of Donkeys and Horses in Hosaena District, Southern Ethiopia

INTRODUCTION: Gastrointestinal helminth parasite infection is a major influencing factor against the profitability of working equines all over the world. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted in the Hosaena district to investigate the prevalence and the potential risk factors of strongyle infection. To address this, 384 equines; donkeys (n = 208), and horses (n = 176) were randomly selected for the coprological examination to identify strongyle eggs using the floatation technique. RESULTS: The study revealed that the overall prevalence of strongyle infection in the Hosaena district was 54.2% and the respective prevalence was 59.1% and 48.2.0% in donkeys and horses, respectively. Strongyles’ infection rates in equines were 56.3%, 53.2%, and 56.6% in young, adult, and old animals, respectively, while the rates were 52.8% and 57.1% in male and female animals. Equids with a good body condition were highly prone to strongyle infection than equines with poor and medium body condition, and equids used for transport and packing, cart pulling, and no purpose were highly infected than those used for packing and transport purposes. A significant variation (P< 0.05) was shown in the statistical analysis between the equines and the prevalence of strongyle infection. However, the occurrence of strongyle infection was not significantly (P>0.05) associated with age, sex, and body condition score of equines. CONCLUSION: Hence, strongyles infection is widely distributed in equines in the study area. Further research, including broad sample sizes of gastrointestinal nematodes in all equines, should therefore be recommended for strategic prevention and control measures in order to understand the severity of the disease.