Prevalence of Rhipicephalus and hyalomma ticks in cattle and associated risk factors in three districts of khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

Abstract

Ticks as vectors of various human, livestock and companion animal diseases are most important globally. In accordance to its economic impact the current study was conducted in three districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province of Pakistan i.e. Mardan, Kohat and Swat. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of ixodid ticks and associated animals' related risk factors. A total of 434 tick infested cattle from three districts were examined conveniently. The genus Rhipicephalus was the most prevalent (68.4%) followed by Hyalomma (19.6%) and mixed tick infestation (12%) in all study districts, respectively. The difference in prevalence of tick infestation was non-significant among the breeds with the exception of crossbred cattle in which it was found significantly (p<0.05) high. Sex and age of the cattle were non-significantly (p>0.05) associated with prevalence of tick infestation. However, the male and young animals were affected more as compared to female and adult animals. Body regions wise distribution of tick infestation revealed that, external genitalia was the most favorite site for tick infestation (73.73%) followed by inner thighs (65%), dewlap (62.21%), neck and back (56.68%), tail (34.56%), around eyes (16.13%), legs (13.36%), ears (11.06%), and flank region (5.76%). This study concludes that Rhipicephalus is the most prevalent tick genus of the study districts. Furthermore, crossbred cattle, young and male animals are at higher risk to tick infestation. The hidden parts of body are infested most by tick infestation.