Prevalence of gastrointestinal parasite in small ruminants of District Dir Upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province of Pakistan

Abstract The present research was planned to assess the occurrence of intestinal parasites in small ruminants of Upper Dir of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province of Pakistan. For this purpose, the faecal material was collected randomly with gloved fingers directly from the rectum region of sheep and goats and the faecal materials were then put in hygienic plastic bottles with 10% formalin. The overall 315 (n=184 sheep and n= 131 goats) faecal samples were collected out of 315 samples, 281 were found positive for different parasites. Patterns-wise prevalence of GI parasites of the study area was found. Overall Single parasitism 89.20% (281/315) with 94.0% (173/184) in sheep and 82.43% (108/131) in goats. Double parasitic infection in small ruminant recorded in which Fasciola+ Haemonchus. contortus in sheep were found their prevalence was 25.54% (47/184). While in goats, the double parasitic infection in which Haemonchus contortus+Trichuris spp were found and their prevalence were 23.43% (30/131). The species found in the sample of sheep were includes, i.e., Strongyloides papillosus (41.30%), Heamonchus controtus (21.73%), Trichuris ovis (17.39%), and Fasciola hepatica (13.58%), the corresponding value for goat were Strongyloides spp 33.33% (36/108), Haemonchus spp 28.70%, (27/108), Trichuris spp 25.20% (27/184) and Fasciola spp 10.68% (14/184). The sheep of the study area are more infected as compared to goats. This study suggested that gastrointestinal parasites are major health problems of small ruminants in the study area. Therefore, a comprehensive study on species of gastrointestinal parasites circulating in the area, control options, cost-effective strategies and awareness about gastrointestinal parasites among the farmers in the study area should be instituted.

Mature trematodes parasitic infection in animals that are the basis to infection in sheep and goats remain dependent on the geographic diversity of chosen class everywhere.Scientific suggestions about trematodes infection clinical symptoms, which are typically happening in hot regions of the biosphere, contain weakness, weight loss, reduce milk manufacture, water-logged, decreasing quality, watery diarrhoea, decrease in the number of products, and even death caused by parasites (Gupta et al., 1987).
No evidence is accessible of parasites of goats and sheep in the present region.This evidence with suggestion is primarily essential for the identification and prevalence of parasitic disease that provides significant understanding for investigation and prevalence of helminthiasis in Dir upper.Therefore, this current research was aimed at examining and the occurrence of the different parasites found in the Gastrointestinal tract of both goat and sheep of Dir upper District of KPK.

Study area
The total area of District Upper Dir is 3699 square kilometers.It is situated with latitudes and longitudes of 35° and 71° N, respectively.Geographically upper Dir district is situated on the north side of Pakistan.This district is surrounded in North West by district Chitral, west by Bajwar agency, in the south by district Dir lower, while in the East by Swat district see (Figure 1) Mostly district Dir upper is covered with high mountains and hills.In contrast, there is no plain area in the study region.

Study population
The study population consisted of all goats and sheep in the study area.

Introduction
Gastrointestinal parasites cause mortalities, production loss, and weight loss in small ruminants (goats and sheep), thereby impeding their production system.Small ruminants (goat and sheep) constitute a significant portion of livestock in a country (Siddiki et al., 2009).Livestock has greater importance in raising the financial position of a country because livestock is the chief source of protein, and their products like skin, bones, and many goods are made from the fetch of these animals (Gupta et al., 1987).Common abdominal parasites of livestock are coccidia species of phylum protozoa.Trematodes belong to flukes, nematodes commonly called roundworms, cestodes famous on tapeworms, while the most abundant nematodes in small ruminants are Tricho Strongyloides which their prevalence are worldwide (Awraris et al., 2012).Nematodes have a single host life cycle in small or large ruminant's guts to complete their life cycle (Scott and Sutherland, 2009).Nematode's infections are very significant economically that are the leading agents for poor growth and insufficient production.Livestock are highly susceptible to different infections of these nematodes (Lashari and Tasawar, 2011), Paramphistomiasis, Fascioliasis, Tricho strongylosis, Haemonchosis and oesophagostomiasis GI parasitism can affect the growth and production of livestock (Speedy, 1992).Haemonchosis cause serious mortalities in sheep and goats also cause significant loses if there is no treatment programmes and appropriate monitoring of parasites (Besier et al., 2016).Trematodes are endoparasites that have indirect life cycles with one or more intermediate host's molluscs (Berra and Au, 1978).Parasites of trematodes are universally distributed in ruminants' animals and have attained a high zoological position in the world (Rafique et al., 2009).The common fluke's Fasciola hepatica lives in the liver of sheep and causes fascioliasis.Fasciola hepatica intends countless financial harm that are universally discrete classes (Irfanullah et al., 2016).

Samples collection
Faecal samples were collected from upper Dir districts of the three most populated regions as Wari, Khas Dir, and Sharingal.

Normal saline solution
A solution of the saline wet mount was made in which 2 grams of faces were mixed within the drop of saline upon a glass slide.A light microscope was used for smear examination as described by Urquhart et al. (1987).

Sedimentation technique
The sedimentation technique was used to detect some parasites' eggs like trematodes eggs are larger than other parasitic eggs; therefore, these eggs settled down quickly in the test tube when centrifuged with a solution of NaCl.After this, a drop of settled down material put on the slides with a drop of NaCl and examined under the microscope at 4x and 10x ranges, respectively.

Statistical analysis
Statistically, analysis conducted using SPSS 16.0.The comparative occurrence of dissimilar gastrointestinal (GI) parasites class or individuals correspondingly measured as (%) of prevalence = (numbers of +samples/Total numbers of samples studied) x100.The evocative information gotten examined over manifold log deteriorations for the measurement of significance of association determined like age of species sex and ecology of occurrence and gastrointestinal parasites in small ruminants (Sajid et al., 2009).

Results
The current study is based on the identification and prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites in small ruminants (goats and sheep)  Double parasitic infection in small ruminant of District Upper Dir recorded in two categories in sheep and goats first category for sheep in which Fasciola+ Haemonchus.contortus were included, their prevalence were25.54%(47/184), and the second category in which trichuris.Ovis+ Haemonchus.Contortus were included, their prevalence recorded 22.82% (42/184), while in Goats, the triple parasitic infection of the first category in which Haemonchus contortus+Trichuris spp were included and their prevalence were 23.43% (30/131) and the second category in which Haemonchus. contortus +stryngile were recorded, their prevalence was 18.75% (24/131) see (Table 3) Triple parasitic infection in sheep of District Upper Dir recorded in two categories in sheep and goats first category for sheep in which Fasciola spp+ H. contortus + T. ovis were included their prevalence was 20.10% (37/184).In the second category in which Trichuris spp + Haemonchus spp+Strongyle were included, their prevalence recorded 25.54% (47/184).In contrast, in Goats, the triple parasitic infection of the first category in which H. Contortus + Trichuris spp, Strongyle spp were included and their prevalence were 26.56% (34/184) and the second category in which Haemonchus spp+Strongyle spp+Faciola spp were recorded, their prevalence was 17.96% (23/131) see (Table 4)

Discussion
This present research work showed the overall occurrence of the parasite in sheep and goat that were 94.0% (n=173/184 and 89.20% (n=108/131), respectively.
Different species of nematodes recovered during this investigation have already been reported by different researchers in different parts of the world (Pedreira et al., 2006;Nwosu et al., 2007;Lashari and Tasawar, 2011).
The prevalence recorded in the present study is lower than the study conducted by (Gadahi et al., 2009).They reported overall prevalence among the sample from the sheep n=48(53.33%)and n=206(66.45%)from goat were detected positive for GI parasites.Thus the result of the present study is nearly similar to the study conducted by (Singh et al., 2017).They reported the prevalence rate of goat 212 (85.16%) while in sheep 391 (79.24%), the occurrence of gastrointestinal parasites tended to be higher in sheep 62 (72%) than in goats 160(63%) (Asif et al., 2008).
In risk factor Patterns wise prevalence of GI parasites of the study area was found in overall single parasitism 89.20% ( 281 2).
Similarly, a study conducted in various part of the world revealed that the result of the present study is nearly similar to the study conducted by (Gadahi et al., 2009).In their investigation, 53.33% prevalence for sheep and 66.45% prevalence for goat have observed in which most of the sample were positive with multiple infections than single  3) in goats respectively.
The present study result of double parasitic infection was nearly similar to the study instigated by Ayaz et al. (2013) in small ruminants and greater than the study conducted by (Rafiullah et al., 2011).Their investigation reported higher double parasitic infection with a significant P value=0.02.This infection rate is due to the variation present in weather grazing behaviour, and many other risk factors responsible for the prevalence of parasitism in small ruminants discussed earlier.
In the current study, triple parasitic infection in sheep of District Upper Dir were nematodes and protozoan with the prevalence rate of 25.54% (47/184) of species Fasciola spp+ H. contortus + T. ovis.And H. Contortus + Trichuris +Strongyle 26.56% (34/184) and Hemunchus spp+Strongyle spp +Faciola spp = 17.96% (23/131) see (Table 4) in goats.These tipple parasitic infections were also investigated by various researchers in various parts of the world, like 42.225 by (Gadahi et al., 2009), who reported the prevalence of parasitic infections in small ruminants of the species Trichurus spp+Coccidia spp and Haemonchus spp.

Figure 1 .
Figure 1.Map of Study area Dir Upper KPK Pakistan.

Table 2 .
Pattern wise Single parasitic infection among sheep and goats in District Dir upper.

Table 3 .
Double parasitic infection among sheep and goat in District Dir upper Pakistan.

Table 4 .
Triple parasitic infection among sheep and goats in District Dir upper.