Experimental studies on the interaction between infections of Ostertagia leptospicularis and other bovine Ostertagia species.

Experimental infections of calves were carried out with either isolates of predominantly Ostertagia ostertagi, pure O. leptospicularis or a mixed isolate of equal numbers of both these species. The total worms established on day 21 for the mixed species from a total inoculum of 100 000 infective larvae, was 1.2 times greater than from 100 000 larvae of the O. ostertagi isolate and 3.3 times that of the pure O. leptospicularis isolate. The increased establishment in the mixed inoculum referred to both O. ostertagi and O. leptospicularis (days 17 and 21). These differences were both highly significant (P less than 0.01). The severity of the pathological changes was also greater in the mixed infections. It is suggested that these findings must be taken into account when control measures involving alternate grazing of sheep and cattle are being employed.