Cryptosporidium infection in cattle in Ogun state, Nigeria

The prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. in cattle faeces in Ogun state, Nigeria was determined by a commercially produced enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit. Out of a total of 200 samples, 37.5% were positive for Cryptosporidium coproantigens. The highest rate of infection (78.1%) was observed in calves up to 3 months of age while adult cattle over 4 years of age had the lowest rate of infection (25.0%). There were significant differences (p 0.05) between the infection rates of the different age groups of cattle sampled. There was however no significant difference (p 0.05) between the infection rates in males (41.2%) and females (33.6%). Furthermore, the infection rate in diarrhoeic cattle (43.2%) was not significantly higher (p 0.05) than in non-diarrhoeic cattle (32.4%). The result of the study showed that the prevalence of cryptosporidiosis is high in cattle in southwestern part of Nigeria with calves being at the highest risk.