QUESTION: There is a lot of dialogue of late regarding whipworm in
camelids
and control of manure. Some say whipworm is not species specific and
others
that say that
it is. The issue mostly revolves around potential exposure by camelids
to
canine or cat feces infected or potentially infected and vice versa.
Since there appears to be more than one opinion, I was hoping you could
assist in shedding some light on the subject that I could share. Are
there animal specific species of whipworms?
ANSWER: Whipworms (Trichuris sp.) are somewhat species specific. For
example, camelids are not susceptible to canine (T vulpis) or swine (T
suis) whipworm infection, but most certainly are susceptible to
whipworms
from cattle/sheep/goats (e.g. T ovis and of cattle is T discolor).
Thus, there are species barriers when the difference is great enough.
Trichuris species specifically identified in camels include T globulosa,
T
cameli, and T skrjabini. The main Trichuris of SA Camelids seems to be T
ovis, the sheep whip, but T tenuis has been identified.
The eggs survive on pasture for years through extremes of temperatures.
Thus, clinical infestations are often most severe after a drought
because
the other "competing" parasites have died away leaving only the
infective
whips.
These worms are hard to treat. I prefer fenbendazole at 20 mg/kg body
weight for a minimum of 3 and preferably 5 days in a row. Re-treatment
is
advisable in 6 to 8 weeks because rapid re-infection is common!
David E Anderson, DVM, MS
Ohio State University
|