You may have heard of coccidiosis. If you have a dog or cat that has contracted this parasite, you know that managing the illness is fairly straightforward. However, when you have a large number of animals which are susceptible to infection it is critical to know as much as you can about coccidiosis in ranch animals. Knowing what causes the illness, what the symptoms are and how it is spread are critical if you own herd animals. You need to know what may be normal for your animals and when you need to seek veterinary care for them.
Like many diseases which can plague animals, coccidiosis is caused by a parasite. These protozoa invading the intestinal muscoa of the animal. These include most domestic animals. Pet owners may be concerned about the presence of these parasites in their dogs and cats. Ranch owners may be more concerned about an outbreak of coccidia in their large herd animals. Goats, horses, sheep and cattle can all be affected by different strains of coccidia. Coccidiosis refers to the illness which is a direct result of protozoa invading the intestinal muscoa of the animal.
Coccidiosis can be more of an issue if you are keeping a large number of animals in the same area. Herd animals can often end up with coccidiosis spreading throughout the members. There is more of a risk of this happening if the area where the animals are being kept is contaminated by feces or if there are a large number of young animals in the herd. If this is the case, you need to be extra alert about the possibility of your young animals contracting the disease.
The first factor is that coccidia strains are species-specific. This means that a goat cannot be infected with coccidia from a dog or a cat. There are several strains which can be contracted by humans such as toxoplasmosis. However, most people are able to handle exposure to a coccidia infection and not become ill. If they are pregnant or they have a compromised immune system this can be different.
Even if you do have an outbreak of coccidiosis in your herd animals, you may find that only animals with weak or incomplete immune systems are able to be infected. Young animals are at higher risk. The problem is that young animals are not able to handle the effects of the disease as well as older or fully healthy animals. Therefore they are at greater risk of suffering severe health problems after contracting coccidiosis. It is important that if one animal in the herd tests positive for coccidiosis that you keep a close eye on the others and make sure your animal husbandry is as immaculate as possible in order to prevent a larger scale infection.
In animals, the parasite causes diarrhea. It is usually watery, but it can also become bloody as well if the infection becomes severe. In animals, this can be a problem if they become dehydrated or are weakened too much by the infection. It may attack young animals and these animals are at particular risk because they cannot handle the loss of hydration as much as an adult may be able to. As well, because their body weight is not as high, they may suffer more if they lose too much weight. Animals have been known to die from coccidiosis.
There are a couple of things that you need to know about treating the disease with medications. If you are tempted to try and control the problem using dewormers you need to know that they will be ineffective. With this particular parasite, you need a medication such as monensin or amprolium which will prevent the parasite from being able to reproduce. This allows the animal’s immune system to catch up and fight the parasites before they completely overwhelm the animal.
The management of your herd animals’ health is an ongoing concern. You need to be aware of and alert for the presence of this illness in your animals. Making sure that they are free from infection can help you maintain healthy and profitable herds over a longer term basis.
Review the treatment options and protocols forcoccidiosis in cattle and other livestock. Learn about coccidiosis treatment by visiting the coccidiosistreatment.com website.
