University of Edinburgh, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, Easter Bush Veterinary Centre, Roslin, Midlothian, Scotland, EH25 9RG, United Kingdom.
University of Glasgow, Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health & Comparative Medicine, Garscube Estate, Glasgow, Scotland, G61 1QH, United Kingdom.
Prev Vet Med. 2019 Nov 1;171:104752. doi: 10.1016/j.prevetmed.2019.104752. Epub 2019 Aug 25.
Gastrointestinal nematodes (GIN) are a serious concern for sheep producers worldwide. However, there is a paucity of evidence describing the epidemiology of GIN on modern UK sheep farms. The aim of this paper was to understand whether expected seasonal variations of infection are still found in ewes and lambs under varying management strategies in temperate climates. Faecal egg counts (FEC) were conducted on freshly voided samples collected from groups of ewes and lambs every third week for twelve months on three farms in southeast Scotland. The patterns of egg output have been described here in relation to management practices undertaken on the farms. Despite changes in farming practice and climatic conditions, the findings complement historical studies detailing the epidemiology of GIN. Findings include a periparturient rise in ewe FEC on two of the farms, while lambing time treatment appeared to suppress this on the third farm. On the same two farms lamb FEC increased during the summer, reaching a peak in the autumn. The work also highlights how the ad hoc use of anthelmintics does little to impact these patterns.
胃肠道线虫（GIN）是全世界绵羊养殖户的严重问题。然而，目前关于现代英国绵羊养殖场胃肠道线虫流行病学的证据很少。本文旨在了解在不同管理策略下，温带气候中绵羊的感染是否仍然存在预期的季节性变化。在苏格兰东南部的三个农场，每隔三周对一组母羊和羔羊的新鲜粪便样本进行粪便卵计数（FEC），持续 12 个月。本文描述了这些农场的管理实践与虫卵排出模式的关系。尽管农场的耕作实践和气候条件发生了变化，但这些发现与详细描述胃肠道线虫流行病学的历史研究相补充。研究结果包括在两个农场中，母羊在围产期 FEC 升高，而在第三个农场中，产羔时间处理似乎抑制了这种情况。在相同的两个农场中，羔羊的 FEC 在夏季增加，在秋季达到高峰。这项工作还强调了驱虫剂的临时使用对这些模式的影响很小。
