L’essor de l’élevage des caprins au Bénin est limité par des contraintes liées à la santé et aux pratiques d’élevage. L’objectif de l’étude présentée était de connaître l’opinion des éleveurs sur les pathologies circulant dans les élevages traditionnels de caprins au Bénin. Pour cela, une enquête semi-structurée a été conduite en 2019 dans quatre pôles de développements agricoles du Bénin, fondée sur des groupes de discussion et des entretiens individuels menés auprès de 480 éleveurs de caprins. Des données sur les pratiques d’élevage, la gestion sanitaire des animaux et les maladies rencontrées ont été collectées. Les résultats ont montré que les caprins étaient principalement élevés pour l’épargne, et à un moindre degré pour la production de viande et des raisons socioculturelles. Tous les éleveurs enquêtés pratiquaient la divagation au moins une partie de l’année mais, en saison pluvieuse, certains mettaient les animaux au piquet ou les gardaient en semi-claustration. Les principales pathologies animales signalées par les éleveurs étaient la peste des petits ruminants (PPR), la gale, les parasitoses digestives, les maladies respiratoires, la fièvre aphteuse et la trypanosomose. Le contrôle des parasites était réalisé généralement en cas de nécessité et rarement de façon routinière. La vaccination contre la PPR était pratiquée par trois-quarts des éleveurs. L’élevage des caprins au Bénin est lié au système d’élevage traditionnel et de ce fait victime de nombreuses maladies qui limitent son développement. Il serait nécessaire d’approfondir les connaissances sur ces pathologies à travers des études de diagnostic étiologique afin de mieux orienter les objectifs de surveillance de ces pathologies.

Goat farming in Benin is traditional. In this system, animals harbor parasites that cause economic losses related to growth and reproduction performance, which strongly affect farm productivity. The objective of this study was to evaluate the gastrointestinal parasite burden of goats in Benin. Thus, feces were sampled from 572 and 497 goats in the rainy and dry seasons, respectively, in southern, central and northern Benin. The parasite inventory was performed using the Mini-FLOTAC technique for the quantitative study and the Baermann method for the qualitative research. The results showed an overall prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites of 96.82%. Furthermore, goats were mainly infected with Coccidia (92.24%); strongyles (83.91%), of which the critical genera were Haemonchus spp, Trichostrongylus spp, and Oesophagostomum spp; Strongyloides spp (73.25%) followed by Moniezia spp (21.8%). Other gastrointestinal parasites retrieved were Trichuris spp (0.94%) and Toxocara spp (0.28%). Infestation rates and the number of Eggs Per Gram of feces (EPG) were higher in the wet season than in the dry season. During the wet season, infestations were severe for strongyles, Moniezia spp, coccidian, and moderate for Strongyloides spp and light during the dry season except for Coccidia, where they were intense. Infestation rates and egg excretion of gastrointestinal parasites were shaped by age, sex, breed, and study areas. This knowledge of gastrointestinal parasites will help guide the surveillance of goat parasitosis in Benin.

I n Benin, goat farming is practiced throughout the country, with a national population in 2019 estimated at 1,955,811 heads (FAOSTAT, 2021). Highly adapted to the different agro-ecological conditions of Benin, goats are an essential source of meat products for urban and peri-urban markets. They are present in the daily life of herders for savings, consumption, and ceremonies (Dossa et al., 2007). However, several constraints limit their productivity. Diseases in general, and more particularly parasitosis, are bottlenecks (Challaton et al., 2022). Thus, helminth diseases research Article Abstract | Goat farming in Benin is traditional. In this system, animals harbor parasites that cause economic losses related to growth and reproduction performance, which strongly affect farm productivity. The objective of this study was to evaluate the gastrointestinal parasite burden of goats in Benin. Thus, feces were sampled from 572 and 497 goats in the rainy and dry seasons, respectively, in southern, central and northern Benin. The parasite inventory was performed using the Mini-FLOTAC technique for the quantitative study and the Baermann method for the qualitative research. The results showed an overall prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites of 96.82 %. Furthermore, goats were mainly infected with coccidia (92.24 %); strongyles (83.91 %), of which the critical genera were Haemonchus sp., Trichostrongylus sp., and Oesophagostomum spp. ; Strongyloides spp. (73.25 %) followed by Moniezia spp. (21.8 %). Other gastrointestinal parasites retrieved were Trichuris sp. (0.94%) and Toxocara sp. (0.28%). Infestation rates and the number of Eggs Per Gram of feces (EPG) or Oocysts Per Gram of feces (OPG) were higher in the wet season than in the dry season. During the wet season, infestations were severe for strongyles, Moniezia spp., coccidian, and moderate for Strongyloides spp. and light during the dry season except for coccidia, where they were intense. Infestation rates and egg excretion of gastrointestinal parasites were shaped by age, sex, breed, and study areas. This knowledge of gastrointestinal parasites will help guide for the surveillance of goat parasitosis in Benin.