Fábio Jacobs Dias

Evaluation of methodologies to identify endoparasites in sheep from the Amazon region

Worms are caused by various species of helminths that infect the gastrointestinal tract of sheep, resulting in low productivity and high rates of morbidity and mortality. The objective was to test the indirect or Famacha method, which observes the colour of the conjunctiva, by comparing it with the direct method of counting parasite eggs per gram of faeces, to identify the amount of parasites in the animals. 18 Santa Ines sheep were tested. The visual evaluation method involves grouping animals into five categories, ranging from intense red (1) to pale red (5). It is recommended not to deworm animals classed as 1 or 2 (healthy animals) and to deworm animals in categories 3, 4 and 5 (anemic animals). The parasitic monitoring using the two methodologies took place between November 2011 and April 2012. Testing of the ocular mucosa and the direct egg counting from the rectum of the sheep (individually for control purposes) were done monthly. The rating scale for the evaluation of the ocular mucosa ranged from 1 to 3 corresponding to a range of 0 to 6,500 thousand eggs per gram of feces. At the end of the experiment, there was a reduction of 64.8% of antiparasitic drug usage in the sheep. The method of ocular Revista Brasileira de Higiene e Sanidade Animal Brazilian Journal of Hygiene and Animal Sanity ISSN: 1981-2965

Características das fibras musculares de cordeiros nascidos de ovelhas recebendo suplementação proteica no terço inicial da gestação

It was used 80 Santa Ines ewes with average body weight 47.79 ± 3.76 kg, mated with Dorper rams and fed concentrated diet with 15.20; 22.48; 26.52 and 35.65% crude protein (CP) on the initial third of pregnancy. Sheep were kept on aruana grass (Panicum maximum cv. Aruana) pasture during the day. At birth, biopsy on the left Semitendinosus muscle were done on male lambs to evaluate the number and diameter of muscular fibers. During finishing phase, lambs were distributed in two groups and fed control diet with 16.18% crude protein (CP) and 79.64% total digestible nutrients (TDN); without sunflower grain; or fed diet with 9.10% sunflower grain (15.03% CP and 78.96% TDN). There was no effect of maternal feeding on the weight of lambs at birth (4.82 kg), at 30 days of age (9.69 kg) and at weaning (15.38 kg). Sex affected weight of lambs from birth to weaning. Performance of the lambs during finishing phase was not affected by diet given during this phase, neither by the sex nor by maternal food management during pregnancy. There was no difference on number (2,813.45) neither on diameter (13.16 μm) of the muscle fibers on birth. Contents of crude proteins in diets for sheep at the initial third of pregnancy can be reduced because this reduction does not affect diameter and number of muscle fibers.