No abstract

Hydatidosis is a parasitic disease caused by Echinococcus granulosus. It is also among the most prevalent zoonotic diseases with special importance for public health that causes drastic financial losses in both developed and developing countries. Among Algerian governorates, M’Sila region includes an important number of sheep flocks. Thus, an epidemiological survey was conducted on sheep hydatidosis during 5 months between December 2017 and April 2018 at three slaughterhouses of M’sila governorate, situated in municipalities of M’Sila, Boussaâda and Sidi Aissa. In parallel, an epidemiological investigation via interviews and questionnaire was conducted from March to April, 2018 on a sample of 46 sheep breeders located in M’Sila region. The questionnaire treated several risk factors (presence and deworming of dogs, informal slaughtering practices, fiability of preventive measures…etc.). Results showed a general prevalence of 24.80% among 9048 slaughtered sheep, and a seasonal prevalence higher in spring (42.02%) than in winter (21.65%) (p>0.05). Sheep of five to six years old and more are the most parasitized (p<0.0001). The lungs (38. 24%) and the livers (30.39%) were the most affected organs, while 31.24% of sheep were affected simultaneously in both organs (liver and lungs). Furthermore, females are more affected (97.99%) than males (2.01%) (p<0.0001).

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of housing systems (free vs. tie-stall) and season (winter vs. spring) on the welfare of dairy cows through indices of cleanliness, leg health (straightness, hocks and knees), lameness score, body condition and milk production. This is to test the hypothesis that dairy cows in spring and free-stalls have a better quality of well-being than those kept in tie stalls in winter. For that, 299 dairy cows of the Holstein and Montbeliard breeds were selected from dairy farms in 6 communes of the Constantine governorate in eastern Algeria. The results showed that tie-stalled farms in winter were characterized by a lack of hygiene (P <0.001), with a stall cleanliness score of 7.62 and a frequency of 32.60% of dirty to very dirty cows. In the spring, the incidence of severe lameness does not exceed 9% in farms with tie stalls and more than 41% in mild lameness in housing with free stalls (P <0.001). Cows in tie stalls show a deviation of legs of 17° to 24° (57.97%). On the other hand, more than half of cows in free stalls show integumentary lesions (alopecia and swelling) of the carpal (60.25%) and tarsal joints (54.22%) (P <0.001). The percentage of fairly lean cows (score 2-2.5), housed in tie stalls, was significantly higher (18 to 44%) with a significantly low milk production (P <0.001). These results reflect a lack of comfort in tie-stall farms during winter which has an impact on dairy performance.