Mueleriosis in goats on a farm at Monte Castelo, Santa Catarina

Abstract

Aiming to evaluate the degree of infection of lungworms in goats from Monte Castelo-SC, 12 young (6-8 months of age) and 11 adult female (more than 12 months of age) were examined during a year. Each month, fecal samples were collected directly from the rectum of animals. The Baermann method was used to recover and quantify first-stage larvae (L1) in the feces. Throughout the experimental period, only larvae of Muellerius spp. were identified. In the adult group, the prevalence of positive animals varied between 63.6% and 100%. In the young animals, L1 were only detected after March, with prevalence between 8.3% and 75%. There was no significant correlation between climatic variables and fecal larvae count. There was direct influence of age on the parasitism by Muellerius in goats and adult animals were the most affected.