Abstract

Ticks are harmful blood sucking external parasites of livestock that are distributed in all agro-ecological zones in Ethiopia. A cross sectional study was conducted to identify major tick genera, prevalence and assess tick infestation load on cattle in Menesibu district West Wallaga zone Oromia regional state. A total of 384 animals were sampled using random sampling technique. Of the total examined animals, 53.4% (n=205/384) tick infestation prevalence was recorded. There was no statistically significant difference in prevalence of tick infestation among male and female animals (χ2=0.38; p=0.540). There was statistically significance of prevalence of ticks according to age group (χ2=17.06; p=0.000). Animals with poor body condition score had significantly higher tick prevalence (80.7%) than medium (44.5%) and good body condition score (35.6%) animals (χ2=61.71; p=0.000). This finding indicated that there is high prevalence of tick infestation in the area which alarms for further detailed investigation and designing efficient method of tick control in the study area.

Keywords:Bovine; Menesibu; Prevalence; Tick