Prevalence and Risk Factors Associated with Hard Tick Infestation in Cattle Across the Agro-climatic Zones of Gujarat, India

The distribution of hard ticks infesting cattle across different regions remains a significant challenge to understand. Therefore, the present study was conducted to determine the prevalence and associated risk factors of hard tick infestation in cattle across various agro-climatic zones of Gujarat. A total of 1,795 cattle were screened for tick infestation, of which 1,099 (61.23%) were found to be infested during study period from 2023 to 2025. The overall prevalence of Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus, Hyalomma spp., and Haemaphysalis spp. was recorded as 31.09%, 18.94%, and 8.19%, respectively, in the cattle population. The prevalence of Hyalomma spp. was highest in Zone 5 (37.24%) and Zone 6 (32.84%), representing arid and dry climatic regions, whereas Haemaphysalis spp. showed the highest prevalence (24.76%) in Zone 1, characterized by hilly terrain and heavy rainfall. Tick infestation was significantly higher (76.48%) in cattle aged less than one year compared to animals aged 1–3 years (61.31%) and above three years (49.94%). Cattle with poor body condition or anaemia, those maintained under loose housing systems (68.10%), and animals subjected to group feeding practices (60.10%) exhibited significantly higher (p<0.05) tick infestation rates. Season-wise analysis revealed that the prevalence of tick infestation was highest during summer (76.48%), followed by the rainy season (61.31%) and winter (49.94%).