Determination of percentage elongation at break and histopathology of skin from yankasa sheep experimentally infested with Amblyomma variegatum.

Bites of haematophagous ectoparasites cause mechanical injuries and histopathological changes in their hosts' hides and skins whose resultant leathers become unsuitable for certain leather products. The effects of tick bites on the wellbeing of their hosts are known, however, knowledge of their effects on the quality of leathers is scarce. This work investigated the effects of tick bites on the histopathology of skin and the percentage elongation at break (PEB) of shoe upper leathers produced from the skins of Amblyomma variegatum infested Yankasa sheep. A total of nine apparently healthy Yankasa sheep were selectively purchased from the open market and acclimatized for four weeks in the laboratory. Three animals in each of group 1 and 2 were infested with 40 nymphs and 20 adults of Am. variegatum respectively. Group three animals served as uninfested control. All animals were euthanized after the ticks were fully engorged and detached. Skin biopsies at tick attachment points and the uninfested control were taken from flayed skins and processed for histopathological examination. All skins were processed into finished leathers and their PEB determined. Histopathological studies revealed keratinization in all Am. variegatum infested sheep skins, while the un-infested control skins were normal. Mean PEB (%) of leathers were 21.41±3.33SE (nymphs), 36.73±4.44SE (adults) and 47.83±2.78SE (control). Bites of Am. variegatum cause histopathological changes in Yankasa sheep skins that significantly (p = 0.006) reduce the PEB of resultant leathers to less than the acceptable minimum standard of 40 % whose leathers are classified as rejects. In this study, skin of Yankasa sheep infested by nymphs and adults of Am. variegatum ticks resulted in low quality leathers that are unsuitable for standard leather products production and are also of low market value due to keratinization. Sustained efforts need to be undertaken to increase the awareness on the negative impact of tick bites on leather products by encouraging livestock farmers to engage in early treatment of animals infested with ticks.