The Prophylactic Effect of Ivermectin Treatments on Nematode Infections of Mammals in a Faunistic Park (Northern Italy)

Abstract

Nematode infections of mammals can spread in zoos and faunistic parks and lead to disease in humans and animals. Group treatment strategies with anthelminthic drugs are common. Still, their effectiveness should be verified by sensitive and specific copromicroscopic analyses. This study assessed longitudinal parasitological monitoring, by FLOTAC® dual technique, in mammals housed in an Italian faunistic park, in order to verify the effectiveness of the two adopted ivermectin prophylactic treatments. Twenty-one species of herbivorous mammals from ten families were treated twice per year with ivermectin in an in-feed formulation (medicated feed containing 1.7 g/ton ivermectin daily, for 30 days in March and November), while 13 species of carnivores and primates from five families were treated once a month with oral or subcutaneous administrations of ivermectin (200 μg/kg body weight (b.w.), from March to November). Fecal samples were collected in June–July and October 2019 (late spring–early summer and autumn sampling groups, respectively). All nematode infections, sustained by Nematodirus spp., Capillaria spp., Trichuris spp., Parascaris spp. and Strongylida, were detected in samples collected from herbivores, presenting prevalence rates of infection of 17.3% (9/52), 15.4% (8/52), 15.4% (8/52), 5.8% (3/52), and 3.8% (2/52), respectively. All carnivores and primates tested negative. The general linear mixed model showed that nematode eggs’ excretion in herbivores were influenced by sampling and sampling-host family interaction. Results showed that frequency and dose of prophylactic treatments in herbivores should be improved according to host and parasite taxonomic groups. The treatment adopted in carnivores and primates, together with hygienic management, was effective in nematode control.

Severe Parasite Co-Infection in a Captive Bactrian Camel: Case Report

“…According to available research, gastrointestinal parasites are the most frequently registered pathogens in camels, and nematodes of orders Strongylida and Enoplida and protozoa of Eimeria sp. are the most common of them [3,4,6,7,9,10,17,[21][22][23]. The present findings of Trichostrongylus sp., Haemonchus sp., Oesophagostomum sp., Trichuris sp., and E. cameli confirm this trend.…”

“…Having in mind favorable conditions for parasites spreading in zoos, the occurrence of this multiple infection in the present case is not a surprise. Infestation of camels with gastrointestinal strongylids and trichurids were also found in a number of European zoos [11][12][13][14]23,[26][27][28], including the Sofia Zoo, where Trichuris sp. and Nematodirus sp.…”

Risk-Based Gastrointestinal Parasite Control in a Tropical Zoological Institute

“…The same survey also found that there were some other institutes that treated the animals only when indicated in the regularly scheduled fecal examinations [2]. Other studies investigate the efficacy of various parasite control programs in captive wild animals based on variations of season and anthelmintic class, which are similar to the strategies used in the management of parasites in domestic livestock [3][4][5]. These strategies employ prophylactic anthelmintic treatment of susceptible animals during the warmer seasons, when parasite development occurs and therefore the risk of parasitic infections increases.…”