Fasciolosis of Cattle in the Central Federal District of the Russian Federation
Fasciolosis is a helminthozoonotic disease that affects mammals of many species, domestic, wild ruminants and humans. The following species of fasciolae are known: Fasciola hepatica (L., 1758); F. gigantica (Cobbold, 1885); F. jacksoni (Cobbold, 1869); F. halli(Sinitsin, 1933); F. californica (Sinitsin, 1933); F. indica (Warma, 1953). In Russia in ruminants only two species were found: Fasciola hepatica and F. gigantica. Fasciolosis occurs in many countries world-wide and in Russia also. It causes significant economic losses in Russia and has social importance also. Regional aspect of the disease is not sufficiently studied, which became the aim of our study. The aim of the present study: was to estimate the prevalence of fasciolae infection in the cattle in the Central Federal District of the Russian Federation. Post-mortem veterinary-sanitary examination aimed to detect fasciolae in the liver of the cattle was conducted accordingly to «Pravila veterinarnogo osmotra uboynykh zhivotnykh i veterinarno-sanitarnoy ekspertizy myasa i myasnykh produktov» (17.06.1988) (Rules of veterinary inspection slaughtered animals and veterinary-sanitary examination of meat and meat products). The examinations were performed in 2016 at abattoirs in Balashikha district of the Moscow region. The results of examination of the livers from 250 slaughtered cattle from the Ryazan region, 59 slaughtered cattle from the Voronezh region, 96 slaughtered cattle from the Tula region, 157 from the Smolensk region are as follows: the slaughtered cattle in the Ryazan region were infected with F. hepatica (50 livers out of 250) with an infestation extensity (IE) = 20%, with an infestation intensity II = 9-112 ex/head, the cattle in the Voronezh Region was infected with F. hepatica (12 out of 59) with an infestation extensity (IE) = 20.3%, with an infestation intensity (II) = 5-93 ex/head, the slaughtered cattle from the Tula region were infected with F. hepatica (21 out of 96) with an IE = 21.9%, with an II = 12-117 ex/head, and the cattle from the Smolensk region were infected with F. hepatica (43 livers out of 157) with an IE =2 7.3%, with an II = 21-129 ex/head. The results of the study show that in the Ryazan, Voronezh, Tula and Smolensk Regions disease prevention measures need to be taken by farmers and managers of livestock farms to reduce the impact of the disease.