Sheep coenurosis: symptoms and signs, treatment and prevention

Cenurosis affects sheep of the age group under 2 years old. Most often, individuals with a weakened immune system get sick. The spreaders of the disease are human assistants - dogs, as well as wolves, jackals or foxes. Infection occurs regardless of the time of year, since the pathogenic bacteria that cause the disease are not afraid of either frost or heat. There are 4 stages of coenurosis.

Biology of the pathogen

The causative agent of coenurosis is the bacterium Coenurosis cerebralis, which "settles" in the brain or spinal cord of the animal. A larva develops from the cestode embryo, in the process of growth acquiring the form of a bubble filled with a clear liquid.On the inner layer of the shell are germinal scolexes, in the amount of 700 or more.

The science of parasitology, which studies the biology and etiology of harmful bacteria, has found that a half-adult parasite reaches 60-80 cm in length and consists of 200-250 segments. Development occurs in the intermediate host, which is more often dogs.

Scolex parasitize in the thin section of the animal for 45-50 days. Adult cestodes can stay in a dog's body for 6 to 8 months.

Disease types

There are 3 types of coenurosis:

1. Serial. It affects animals of the Zaitsev family. Coenurosis is concentrated in the muscular connective tissue, spinal canal, abdominal and chest cavity, eyeballs or in the heart.
2. Scriabin. Cestode larvae penetrate and develop in the muscle tissue of sheep.
3. Cerebral. An invasive disease of sheep that affects the central nervous system. Localized in the brain (less often - in the spinal cord).

Infection occurs in a pasture or watering place, when an animal swallows eggs of parasites along with food or drink.

Signs and symptoms of lesions

The disease appears 16-22 days after infection. The risk of infection is greatly increased if sheep are kept in unhygienic conditions or fed poor quality feed. Parasites after entering the body of an animal with a blood stream are transferred to the brain tissues.

Sick individuals look he althy for a long time. But the bubble grows, affects the brain, leads to disorders in the central nervous system: atrophy, anemia.

Depending on the location of the coenur, their number and size, the symptoms of the disease differ. Signs of illness in sheep:

• with damage to the cerebellum, coordination is disturbed, paralysis is possible;
• helminth settled in the frontal lobe - a mammal, head down, rests it against something and stands motionless;
• tsenur settled in the back of the head - a sheep, raising its head high, backs away;
• if the larvae are located in the spinal cord - the animal has a shaky gait, with a slight pressure on the croup, it falls on its hind legs;
• lesion of the temporal lobe is accompanied by circular movements of the head of the sick individual.

There are 4 stages:

II - acuteFrom 2 to 30The animal loses its appetite, lags behind in growth.Sheep standing with legs apart, head downIII - period of bacteria development7-8 months IV - exacerbation

Illness phases	Duration, day	Symptoms
I - initial	1-21	No outward signs of disease manifestation
	Infected individuals are no different from he althy ones
30-45	When the brain is damaged, sheep raise or lower their heads, there are problems with vision. If the parasites settle in the spinal cord, paralysis sets in, convulsions are possible

If no action is taken, sick individuals die 1-2 months after the onset of the exacerbation phase.

Diagnostic Methods

The diagnosis is made on the basis of the manifestations of the disease, as well as by palpating the skull of the animal. In places where the parasite was localized, the bones become thinner and softer. If the coenura has settled in the upper shells of the brain, the bladder may protrude.

To confirm the correctness of the diagnosis, the animal's nasopharynx should be examined. With coenurosis, the presence of mucus and purulent discharge is traced. 1-2 months before the active growth of bacteria (phase III of the development of the disease), the disease is diagnosed by the eyes of the animal:

• changing the size and color of the optic nerve;
• The whites of the eyes turn red from numerous hemorrhages.

The most accurate diagnosis is the allergic method of diagnosis. An antigen is injected into the skin of the upper eyelid. If the thickening of the skin does not disappear after 6 hours after the injection, the fundus of the animal is examined, the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is taken for analysis.

Treatments

Sheep coenurosis is treated in 2 ways:

1. Surgical. A trepanation of the cranial bone is performed, the bladder is pierced, the fluid is aspirated, and the coenur shell is removed. The lack of liquid is compensated by an antiseptic. In 8 out of 10 cases, there is a complete recovery of the animal.
2. Medical. Therapy is carried out at any stage of the disease in sheep. Chemotherapy of sick individuals is carried out with drugs ("Albendazole", "Niclosamide", "Praziquantel", "Fenbendazole", "Sipicur", "Finkur"), which cause the death of helminths.After that, to remove the inflammation, glucocorticoid drugs are prescribed.

Operate only breeding or valuable breeds of sheep. In other cases, either drug therapy is carried out, or infected individuals are slaughtered.

Prevention

Unbalanced diet, dirt in the sheepfold lead to a weakening of the immunity of animals, increase the likelihood of infection with coenurosis. To protect the herd, it is necessary to adhere to the sanitary requirements for keeping sheep. Preventive measures:

1. Regular deworming of dogs if they help herd and protect sheep. It is forbidden to feed them the meat of infected animals. 1 four-legged watchman per day can release up to 10 million helminth eggs.
2. Protect grazing area from stray animals.
3. Since young sheep are most often infected with coenurosis, you need to carefully monitor their diet. The menu of lambs should include mineral and vitamin supplements.
4. Systematic cleaning and antiseptic treatment of the barn.

In order to timely detect coenurosis and other ailments, you should regularly invite a veterinarian to examine the livestock.

Danger of disease for humans

Cenurosis is a disease that is dangerous not only for animals, a person can also get sick. Larvae for a long time (up to 6 months) do not lose their ability to infect. They are not affected by temperature changes, adverse climatic conditions.

Wash your hands thoroughly after caring for sick sheep. Otherwise, once in the body, the larvae lead to the development of coenurosis in humans. According to statistics, cases of infection in humans are extremely rare.

There is still no clear answer as to whether the meat of a sick animal can be eaten. Some parasitologists advise to burn the carcasses of sick sheep, others recommend subjecting lamb to deep heat treatment. But to say with certainty that during use there will be no infection with helminths, they cannot yet. Compliance with preventive measures and rules for keeping sheep will help to avoid economic losses for the treatment and disposal of sick animals.

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