Prevalence of Gastrointestinal Parasites of Poultry Chicken Slaughtered and Sold in Uyo Metropolis, Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria

Gastrointestinal parasites (GIP) are important biological enemies causing poor health in poultry, thereby causing significant reduction in harvest. This study was aimed to assess the prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites of poultry chickens slaughtered in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State. One hundred and fifty (150) intestinal contents of poultry chickens slaughtered were collected from poultry dressing units in market within Uyo metropolis and kept in polythene bags, and then transported to the Animal and Environmental Biology laboratory of the University of Uyo for analysis. The gizzard, small and large intestine and caeca were assessed for GIP. The method employed in this assessment was Direct Wet Mount following other standard methods. The parasites were analyses by microscopic examination of the fecal smears, thereafter identification of parasite. Five species were encountered in this study: Ascaris galli (32.76%) had the highest, followed by of Eimeria tenella (25.86%), Raillietina tetragona (16.39%) and Histomonas meleagridisis (16.39%). The least was recorded in Heterakis gallinarum (10.34%). Among the 67 (male) and 83 (female) samples, 34.38% and 65.62% respectively recorded positive. Ascaris galli, being the most prevalent was seen in 38 samples and Histomonas meleagridisis (the lowest) was seen in only 12 samples. > 12 weeks age group recorded lowest prevalence (9.3%) while 8-12 weeks had highest (19.30%). This study reveals that 39.12% had single parasitic infection, while mixed had 60.94%. Based on these results, poultry in Uyo farms are affected with gastrointestinal parasitic infection. Therefore, it is recommended that farmer should improve upon their management skills and issues concerning hygiene.