Efficacy of garlic as an anthelmintic in adult Boer goats

Abstract

The goal of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of garlic (Allium sativum L.) for controlling gastroin?testinal parasites in adult female Boer goats. The impact of garlic treatment in goats naturally infected with Haemonchus contortus and Coccidia was evaluated by measuring fecal egg counts, packed cell volume, FAMACHA scores, and body weight. Goats were exposed to four dosage levels of concentrated (99.3%) garlic juice (2.5 ml, 5 ml, and 10 ml) during four weeks. There was a significant decrease in fecal counts of Coccidia eggs in goats treated with 10 ml of garlic juice (group 4; p<0.05). Garlic extract did not reduce fecal egg counts or alleviate anemia associated with H. contortus infection at the concentrations tested (p>0.05). However, at the intermediate dose of garlic (5 ml), goat body weight was significantly increased (group 3; p<0.05). Packed cell volume and FAMACHA scores did not show significant changes. These studies have implications for the control of Coccidia in goats. Garlic extract contributes to the alleviation of gastrointestinal infections in goats by reducing the Coccidia burden and may enhance animal performance in adult goats.Cilj ovih istrazivanja je proucavanje efikasnosti belog luka(Allium sativum L.) u kontrolisanju gastro-intestinalnih parazita kod adulta zenki burskih koza. Antihelmintski uticaj belog luka na prirodno inficirane koze sa Haemonchus contortus i Coccidia je odredjivan na osnovu broja jaja u ekskrementima, hematokrita, rezultata FAMAHA testa i tezine tela. Koze su tretirane sa 2.5, 5.0 i 10.0 ml koncentrovanog soka belog luka. Rezultati su pokazali da je tretmanom sa 10.0 ml ekstrakta belog luka smanjen broj jaja Coccidia, dok je tretman sa 5.0 ml uticao na povecanje telesne tezine. Medjutim, nije zabelezen efekat ekstrakta belog luka na broj jaja Haemonchus contortus i druge pracene parametre. Ova proucavanja su pokazala da se ekstrakt belog luka moze koristiti za redukciju broja Coccidia i za poboljsanje zdravstvenog stanja zivotinja.