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This study assessed the in vitro anthelmintic (AH) activity of methanol and acetone:water leaf extracts from Annona squamosa , A. muricata and A. reticulata against Haemonchus contortus eggs. The egg hatch test was used to determine the effective concentrations required to inhibit 50% of eggs hatching (EC50). The role of polyphenols on AH activity was measured through bioassays with and without polyvinylpolypyrrolidone (PVPP). Methanolic extracts mainly caused the death of eggs at the morula stage (ovicidal activity). Meanwhile, acetone:water extracts caused egg-hatching failure of developed larvae (larvae failing eclosion (LFE) activity). The lowest EC50 values against H. contortus eggs were observed for the methanolic extracts from A. reticulata and A. muricata (274.2 and 382.9 µg/ml, respectively). From the six extracts evaluated, the methanolic extracts of A. muricata , A. reticulata and A. squamosa showed the highest ovicidal activity, resulting in 98.9%, 92.8% and 95.1% egg mortality, respectively. When the methanolic extract of A. squamosa was incubated with PVPP, its AH activity increased. Similarly, when acetone:water extracts of A. muriata and A. reticulata were incubated with PVPP, their LFE activity increased. Alkaloids were only evident in methanolic extracts, irrespective of PVPP incubation. The presence of acetogenins was not observed. In conclusion, methanolic extracts obtained from leaves of A. muricata , A. reticulata and A. squamosa showed ovicidal activity affecting the morula of H. contortus eggs, with minor LFE activity. Meanwhile, acetone:water extracts showed mostly LFE activity, with a lower proportion of ovicidal activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the rainy season, the tropical deciduous forest (TDF) supposedly represents an abundance of biomass for sheep and goats. Nevertheless, quantitative estimations of feed intake during the rainy season are lacking. This study investigated the feeding behaviour of sheep and goats in a TDF in Mexico and quantified their nutrient intake during the rainy season. Plant species (PS) consumed, size and weight of bites, and nutritional quality were determined by continuous bite monitoring through direct observation. Adult ewes (n = 3) and goats (n = 3) were observed in their grazing circuits (4 h/day) for 12 days during the rainy season. Sheep and goats consumed 61 PS and performed a similar median number of bites (1751 vs 2053 bites/day, respectively; P > 0.05). Although they shared 52.5% of the PS consumed, only seven PS contributed most of the dry matter intake (DMI) for sheep (96.7%) or goats (90.5%). Sheep consumed more grass than goats (79.8% vs 48.3% of their DMI, respectively), whereas goats ate more shrubs than sheep (30.0% vs 7.6% of their DMI, respectively). The diet ingested by goats included more polyphenols (P < 0.05) and a higher frequency of larger and heavier bites than sheep (P < 0.05). Sheep reached 61.3% and 57.7% of their metabolisable energy and crude protein maintenance requirements. Similarly, goats covered 63.3% of their metabolisable energy and 108.2% of crude protein requirement. Although the main ration of sheep and goats was composed of similar PS, their different feeding behaviour resulted in different macronutrient consumption. The vegetation of tropical deciduous forests represent an important source of nutrients for small ruminants in many farms; however, feeding behaviour and nutrient intake of sheep and goats in that vegetation during the rainy season is unknown. We showed that both consumed similar plant species but had different feeding behaviour, goats browsed more than sheep, obtaining more protein and polyphenols. Sheep and goats consumed an imbalanced diet that would require dietary energy for goats and a protein : energy supplement for sheep. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Goats browsing in a tropical deciduous forest (TDF) obtain a large proportion of their diet from a large number of plant species. Nevertheless, the goat's feed resource selection has not been studied in such an ecosystem. This study aimed to determine whether goats browsing in a TDF display active feed resource selection. Two browsing sites were used (A = 2.2 ha and B = 2.6 ha). The effective availability (g) of all plant species available was measured for each site using 10 m × 20 m exclusion quadrants. Three non-pregnant adult goats (34.9 ± 2.4 kg liveweight) with browsing experience were observed using the continuous bite monitoring method to determine their respective dry matter intake. The selection of different plants was determined using the Jacobs' selection index (JSI). The goats' dry matter intake per day was 723 and 310.8 g for Sites A and B, respectively. At both browsing sites, the plant with the highest biomass availability was Gymnopodium floribundum (75.5% and 49.3% for Sites A and B, respectively). Nevertheless, the plant species most actively selected by goats were Eragrostis ciliaris at Site A (JSI = 0.99, P < 0.05) and Mimosa bahamensis at Site B (JSI = 0.96, P < 0.05). Some plant species were not consumed at Sites A and B (three and five species, respectively). In conclusion, feed resource selection was not associated with the biomass availability of the plants selected or refused. Goats were able to show active feed resource selection in the TDF, and this could change according to the characteristics of the browsing site. Plants of the tropical deciduous forest (TDF) represent a valuable feed resource for goats in hot sub-humid environments, but little is known about the goats' feeding behaviour in the TDF. Sustainable use of TDF by browsing goats requires establishing whether plant resources will be consumed in proportion to their availability or whether particular plant species are actively selected or refused. This study showed that goats consumed several plant species, while actively selected only a few plants, and such behaviour changed in different browsing sites. This information could assist with the development of management strategies leading to protect the valuable plant resources of the TDF by goats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of tannin-rich fodder (TRF) consumption on the saliva response of Criollo goats without previous browsing experience was determined. Eighteen kids were allocated into three treatments (n = 6 each): control group (CG), short-term tannin stimulus (TS) and long-term tannin stimulus (TL). Three experimental periods were used: adaptation (two weeks) in which the three treatment groups were fedPennisetum purpureumgrass and supplemented with a balanced feed. In period 1 (five weeks), TS and TL treatments were fed TRF (Lysiloma latisiliquum) with 55.5 g/kg DM condensed tannins (CT), grass and balanced feed. In period 2 (three weeks),L. latisiliquumfodder was withdrawn from the TS group. Thus, both the TS and the CG kids were only offered grass and balanced feed, while TL kids continued to receive TRF. In each period, saliva samples were collected to measure the tannin–protein interaction, salivary protein and protein turbidity index (PTI). The salivary protein was similar in all treatments and periods (P > .10). The goats' saliva reacted similarly when mixed with either tannic acid orL. latisiliquumwater-acetone extract. Although the PTI tended to increase in the TL group compared to CG and TS with time, such difference was not significant. Thus, TRF intake failed to further increase the salivary response or PTI. Therefore, the saliva of goats from Yucatan, without previous browsing experience do have a constitutive response as it can block tannins irrespective of TRF stimulus. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Highlights • Effect of gastrointestinal nematodes (GIN) on goats´ feeding behaviour was studied. • Intake of plant species, macronutrients and condensed tannins (CT) was monitored. • Intake of plants, macronutrients and CT was similar irrespective of GIN infection. • Suppression of GIN does not modify feeding behaviour of goats in the tropical forest. Abstract The aim of this study was to identify modifications in the feeding behaviour of goats browsing a tropical deciduous forest (TDF) when natural gastrointestinal nematode (GIN) infection was suppressed. Continuous bite monitoring through direct observation was implemented in 12 Criollo goats (adults, non-pregnant) foraging for 4 h per day during the rainy season. In the first Period (P1, one observation point) all goats were maintained with natural GIN infection. In the second Period (P2, three observation points), goats were equally distributed into 2 groups: i) moxidectin treated group (TG) used in a suppressive scheme; and ii) naturally infected group (IG). For each observation point, goats were monitored at three timepoints per day (80 min each), for three consecutive days, to estimate their intake of dry matter (DM), condensed tannins (CT), crude protein, metabolizable energy and digestible DM. Live weight (LW), faecal samples and blood samples were obtained every 28 days to determine LW change, faecal egg counts (FEC) and packed cell volume (PCV). During P1 and P2, the TG and IG had similar LW change and PCV. During both periods, the intake of DM, CT and all macronutrients were similar for TG and IG. The suppression of GIN infection did not modify the feeding behaviour of goats. Therefore, a therapeutic self-medicative behaviour was not identified in Criollo goats browsing a TDF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Impact of condensed tannins (CT) on feed intake (DMI) and growth (LWC) was studied. • Metabolic cost of CT intake (CTI) in growing sheep was estimated by meta-analysis. • CTI had no significant impact on DMI and LWC of growing sheep. • CTI cost at maintenance is 20–40gLWC/d and reduces as nutrient supply increase. • The metabolic cost of CTI is proportionally reduced as the DCP supply increases. Abstract This study estimated the impact of condensed tannin (CT) consumption on dry matter intake (DMI) and live weight change (LWC) of growing sheep by means of a meta-analysis. A metabolic cost associated to CT intake was also estimated. Data included in the meta-analysis were obtained from scientific literature with the following inclusion criteria: (a) growing lambs fed ad-libitum without gastrointestinal nematode infection, (b) feed consumption data, (c) chemical composition of diets, and (d) CT consumption data. Data were analyzed as a whole data-set or grouped into three categories: (a) sheep consuming CT (CT group), (b) sheep not consuming CT (non-CT group) and (c) sheep consuming CT + polyethylene glycol (CT + PEG group). The effect of diet composition and quality (crude protein (CP), organic matter (OM), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), condensed tannins (CT), metabolizable energy (ME), dry matter digestibility (DMD), OM digestibility (OMD) and CP digestibility (CPD)) on DMI (g/kg0.75) was evaluated using regression analyses. The effect of diet composition and consumption of those same variables (g/kg0.75) on LWC (g/kg0.75) were also evaluated using respective regression analyses. The metabolic cost of CT consumption was estimated in terms of digestible crude protein (DCP) and ME requirements. The cost was estimated for a diet to sustain maintenance and a diet to supply 100 g/d LWC requirements. No effect was found of CT intake on DMI or LWC (P > 0.05). The DMI was best predicted by CP and DMD concentration (g/kg DM), when analyzed as a whole data-set. When analyzed as separate categories for CT and non-CT group was best predicted by ME (MJ/kg DM) (P < 0.05). For the CT + PEG group the DMI was best predicted by NDF (P < 0.05). The LWC was best predicted by DCPI2 when analyzed as a whole data-set. The best predictor of LWC was the DCP intake (for the CT data) and the ME intake (for non-CT data and CT + PEG data) (P < 0.05). Although CT intake do not have an effect on DMI and LWC, it was observed that at low dietary CP level increases DCP requirement and hence it does have a metabolic cost associated. The metabolic cost of CT consumption estimated for animals consuming a maintenance diet was 0.33 MJ of ME/kg0.75 and 1.04 g of DCP/kg0.75 and for animals fed a 100 g LWC diet was 0.13 MJ of ME/kg0.75 and 0.87 g DCP/kg0.75. Thus, a higher cost for CT intake was found for groups of lambs at low feeding level and the metabolic cost was reduced when lambs were at higher feeding levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Human animal interaction (HAI) is key to get reliable data on behavioural studies. • We propose a protocol to habituate kids and lambs to the presence of human observers. • Reduction of the flight distance/number of followers indicate habituation progress. • Challenge manoeuvre was successful when animals reduced flight distances to 1 m. • Evasion manoeuvre was successful when number of followers was reduced. Abstract Animal habituation is key to obtain reliable data on behavioural studies but detailed procedures to achieve it are scarce. This study designed a set of actions to habituate sheep and goats to human observers. Pelibuey sheep (n = 15) and Criollo goats (n = 10) were classified as (a) avoider, flight from human interaction, or (b) follower, seek human interaction. Habituation was measured by the reduction of flight distance by avoiders, or number of followers in the presence of observers. The habituation protocol consisted of a gradually increased series of five manoeuvres, either challenge (for avoiders) or evasion (for seekers), performed first inside a pen and subsequently in a grass paddock. Habituation was considered successful when animals could be observed from a 1-m distance without flight or following the observer. In the pen, habituation took 12 and 13 days for sheep and goats, respectively. Meanwhile, in the grass paddock habituation took 10 days, for both species. The number of challenge and evasion series was negatively correlated with the flight distance in sheep and with the number of followers in goats. This protocol is simple and practical to implement and enables animal habituation for behavioural studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We evaluated the relationship between individual and herd GIN infection level, nutrition, production performance and anemia parameters in a tropical farm context. Fifty-four female goats were monitored to assess their body condition score (BCS, nutritional status indicator), live weight (LW) and LW gain (LWG, both used as production level indicators), FAMACHA© and hematocrit (HT, both used as anemia indicators). Goats browsed for 4 h in a tropical forest and received balanced feed and chopped grass. The eggs per gram of feces (EPG) indicated the GIN burden, with fecal samples obtained at 7:00 (AM) and 15:00 h (PM.) from each goat at six sampling points during the study. The variables and their relationship with GIN burdens were analyzed using Kruskall-Wallis, ANOVA and Friedman tests and Spearman correlations. The fecal samples obtained in the AM and PM can be equally representative of parasitic burdens (similar and highly correlated). However, the EPG of individual goats from periods of 30 days apart can be considered independent. The BCS and LWG varied between sampling times ( p < 0.05), whereas EPG, LW and HT did not ( p > 0.05). The GIN burden was negatively correlated with HT and BCS (-0.21, p = 0.01 for each one). The individual pattern of infection demonstrates the true impact of GINs on their hosts. Additionally, feeding and nutritional status may present important variations influencing the performance of the goats more than the impact of GINs under the farm conditions of the present study. However, GIN infection contributed to the variation in goat health and productivity in this tropical farm.

Goats fulfil a central role in food and nutritional security across Africa with over half of households owning or rearing goats in rural areas. However, goat performance is poor and mortality high. This study assessed the nutritional quality of commonly used feeds and proposes feed-baskets to enhance goat nutrition and health. Feeds were collected from 11 areas within the Central District of Botswana, and macronutrient analyses were conducted, including crude protein, fibre fractions, ash, and metabolizable energy (ME). Forage nutrition was compared across seasons and soil types. Additionally, seasonal supplementation trials were conducted to evaluate consumption rates of various supplements, including crop residues, pellets, Lablab purpureus , and Dichrostachys cinerea . Each supplement was provided ad libitum for a 24-h period, and consumption rates determined. Findings revealed significant differences in nutrition among various feed sources, across seasons, and in relation to soil types (p < 0.001). Consumption rates of supplements were higher during the dry season, possibly due to reduced forage availability. Supplement consumption rates varied across supplement type, with crop residues accounting for approximately 1% of dry matter intake, compared to up to 45% for pellets, 13% for L. purpureus , and 15% for D. cinerea . While wet season feed baskets exhibited higher ME values compared to dry-season feed-baskets, the relative impact of supplementation was more pronounced during the dry season. These results highlight the potential for optimizing goat diets through improved grazing and browsing management, especially during the reduced nutritional availability in the dry season in Botswana. Such diet optimisation may improve goat health and productivity, which may positively impact the food and financial security of smallholders by providing both increased yields and increased resilience. Importantly, rural communities can experience some of the lowest food security levels in the region. The interventions explored in this study utilise natural capital, often freely available, which can be deployed through existing husbandry systems, potentially making them accessible and practical to smallholders., Competing Interests: Conflicts of interestThe authors declared that they have no conflict of interest., (© The Author(s) 2024.)

Smallholder goat production plays a major role in rural livelihoods and food security in Malawi, but suffers from drastic and unpredictable production losses. While goat production is closely linked to small-scale local markets for slaughter and butchering, the perspectives of butchers and their potential as a source of animal health information are largely untapped. Butchers can provide insights into goat health status at slaughter as well as issues that go unseen before slaughter, such as the presence of indigestible foreign bodies (IFBs). IFBs include solid materials such as plastics and hardware (metals, stones, and other hard objects) that cause foreign body syndrome and can lead to impaction, oedema, malnutrition, and death. To estimate the presence of IFBs, 150 market stand butchers were surveyed across five districts in Malawi, focusing on a distinction between hardware and single-use plastics, which are still widely present in Malawi despite bans on production. Most butchers found plastic IFBs (80.7%), with over half (56.7%) reporting plastic IFBs recently among the past five slaughters. Hardware IFBs were less common, reported by 45.3% of butchers. While some butchers commented on the impact of IFBs on meat quality metrics ex-post, the majority observed no differences. While butchers unanimously considered health to be an important characteristic when sourcing goats, 70.7% consider injury status to be less important or not important. Overall, this study highlights the issue of anthropogenic waste pollution on goat production in Malawi and demonstrates the potential for the surveillance of goat health at market.

Background: Veterinary diagnostics aid intervention strategies, track zoonoses, and direct selective breeding programs in livestock. In ruminants, gastrointestinal nematode (GIN) parasites are a major cause of production losses, but morphologically similar species limit our understanding of how specific GIN co-infections impact health in resource-limited settings. To estimate the presence and relative abundance of GINs and other helminths at the species level, we sought to develop a low-cost and low-resource molecular toolkit applied to goats from rural Malawi smallholdings., Methods: Goats were subjected to health scoring and faecal sampling on smallholdings in Lilongwe district, Malawi. Infection intensities were estimated by faecal nematode egg counts with a faecal subsample desiccated for DNA analysis. Two DNA extraction methods were tested (low-resource magbead kit vs high-resource spin-column kit), with resulting DNA screened by endpoint polymerase chain reaction (PCR), semi-quantitative PCR, quantitative PCR (qPCR), high-resolution melt curve analysis (HRMC), and 'nemabiome' internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS-2) amplicon sequencing., Results: Both DNA isolation methods yielded comparable results despite poorer DNA purity and faecal contaminant carryover from the low-resource magbead method. GINs were detected in 100% of samples regardless of infection intensity. Co-infections with GINs and coccidia (Eimeria spp.) were present in most goats, with GIN populations dominated by Haemonchus contortus, Trichostrongylus colubriformis, Trichostrongylus axei, and Oesophagostomum columbianum. Both multiplex PCR and qPCR were highly predictive of GIN species proportions obtained using nemabiome amplicon sequencing; however, HRMC was less reliable than PCR in predicting the presence of particular species., Conclusions: These data represent the first 'nemabiome' sequencing of GINs from naturally infected smallholder goats in Africa and show the variable nature of GIN co-infections between individual animals. A similar level of granularity was detected by semi-quantitative PCR methods, which provided an accurate summary of species composition. Assessing GIN co-infections is therefore possible using cost-efficient low-resource DNA extraction and PCR approaches that can increase the capacity of molecular resources in areas where sequencing platforms are not available; and also open the door to affordable molecular GIN diagnostics. Given the diverse nature of infections in livestock and wildlife, these approaches have potential for disease surveillance in other areas., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

We evaluated the effect of browsing experience, nutritional quality and secondary compounds of forage resources, and the interaction between these factors on the selection and intake of goats in a cafeteria trial. Twelve juvenile Criollo goats from 7 to 9 months of age, weighing 22 ± 3 kg, were divided into two groups: (a) browser goats group ( n = 6, BG), and (b) naïve goats group ( n = 6, NG), formed according to their previous browsing experience (with and without, respectively). Animals were housed in individual pens. The cafeteria experiment lasted 21 days considering pen adaptation, foliage adaptation, and measurements, which included the selection index (SI) of experimental forage resources (Chesson's alpha) and their dry matter intake (DMI/Kg 0.75 ), using a multiple Latin square design. Furthermore, correlation and regression analyses were used to assess the relationship between the aforementioned factors. The NG did not show any selection pattern, while the BG selected Piscidia piscipula and Senegalia gaumeri ( p = 0.0002). The BG consumed smaller amounts of secondary compounds compared to NG ( p = 0.0001). In the BG, the flavonoids affected negatively their selection (R 2 = 97.51, p = 0.0001), while the DMI was affected by in vitro DM digestibility and flavonoids (R 2 = 99.85; p = 0.0001). For the NG, the crude protein and organic matter contents were associated with DMI, but none had a significant relationship with SI. The BG selected and consumed forages with suitable nutritional quality avoiding those with high content of secondary compounds such as flavonoids. Conversely, NG did not show a clear pattern for their selection or intake.

Climate change is causing detrimental changes in living organisms, including pathogens. This review aimed to determine how climate change has impacted livestock system management, and consequently, what factors influenced the gastrointestinal nematodes epidemiology in small ruminants under tropical conditions. The latter is orientated to find out the possible solutions responding to climate change adverse effects. Climate factors that affect the patterns of transmission of gastrointestinal parasites of domesticated ruminants are reviewed. Climate change has modified the behavior of several animal species, including parasites. For this reason, new control methods are required for controlling parasitic infections in livestock animals. After a pertinent literature analysis, conclusions and perspectives of control are given.

Purpose: Some agroindustrial by-products could be used as nutraceutical materials for small ruminants helping with their nutrition while controlling their gastrointestinal nematodes. This study evaluated the potential in vitro nutraceutical value of pod husks and leaves of three varieties of Theobroma cacao using two Haemonchus contortus isolates with different polyphenol susceptibility., Methods: Leaves and husks from three T. cacao varieties (AZT, CAL and CEY) were evaluated for their bromatological composition, in vitro dry matter digestibility and polyphenol content. Acetone:water extracts (70:30) of each plant variety were evaluated using the egg hatch and larval exsheathment inhibition tests, using two isolates (FESC and PARAISO) of H. contortus. Effective concentrations 50% (EC 50 ) were determined for both tests. The role of polyphenols was confirmed using polyvinylpolypyrrolidone. L 3 exposed to CAL leaf extract were submitted to transmission electron microscopy., Results: Both plant materials showed a good nutritional value to complement protein-rich diets for small ruminants. Extracts inhibited exsheathment of H. contortus L 3 more effectively than the egg hatching, and the leaf extracts were more active than husk extracts in the L 3 exsheathment inhibition. The FESC isolate was more sensitive to extracts. Polyphenols blocked exsheathment inhibition of leaf extracts. Structural damage was observed in the sheath and muscles of L 3 exposed to CAL leaf extracts., Conclusion: The two T. cacao materials tested showed their potential to be used as ruminant feeds. Extracts affected H. contortus by blocking L 3 exsheathment, particularly with the leaf extracts. The in vivo nutraceutical value should be confirmed in small ruminants., (© 2021. Witold Stefański Institute of Parasitology, Polish Academy of Sciences.)