Questionnaire survey on sheep husbandry and worm management practices adopted by farmers in Rajasthan

In small ruminants the benefits of anthelmintic interventions for worm control are under threat due to exorbitant rise in anthelmintic resistant strains of gastrointestinal nematodes. A questionnaire survey was undertaken with 707 sheep farmers in Rajasthan to obtain information on sheep husbandry and worm management practices in order to formulate effective and sustainable strategy that can prolong the life of existing anthelmintics. The average flock strength was 68.1±2.1 and the commonest grazing resources were community grazing land/forest, top feed and on-farm waste. The average annual lambing was 78.5±0.7% with one major (September – October) and one minor (November – February) period. The average annual anthelmintic drench frequency in flocks was 2.61±0.03 usually coinciding with shearing. Majority of farmers were found to use commonly available benzimidazole and imidothiazole groups of anthelmintics without any planned rotational use. A total of 71.5% of farmers were reported to select anthelmintics either using their own wisdom and experience or on the advice of chemists. The criteria used for dose determination was found faulty. The study indicated lack of knowledge about worm epidemiology, worm control strategies, anthelmintic use and problem of anthelmintic resistance among the majority of sheep farmers in Rajasthan. Use of anthelmintics in flock was dependent on the availability of money and drug in the nearby market and not on the epidemiology of parasites. There is an ample scope for utilization of epidemiological knowledge and sheep rearing practices in better targeting of anthelmintic treatments and prevention of erratic and indiscriminate use of anthelmintics as well as maintenance of refugia.