The long, thick wool of sheep is not only protection for the body, but also a habitat for various types of ticks. Parasites can multiply on animals in considerable numbers, on adults and lambs, sometimes causing irreparable harm. To cure animals or prevent the appearance of parasites, the livestock breeder needs to know how to treat sheep against ticks, what medications and folk remedies.
How does parasite infection occur?
Ticks appear on sheep with the beginning of the warm season.Parasites wait for victims on the grass in the pasture. Animals can also become infected by contacting animals that already have parasites. This is how lambs and young animals become infected. The saliva of ticks contains anesthetic substances that make the moment of the bite insensitive and invisible to animals. Several types of mites can live on sheep's wool.
Most often, ticks can be found on those animals that live in inappropriate conditions: in dirty, unclean rooms. Individuals who get sick are those whose fur is not taken care of, the animals are not fed correctly, and diseases that weaken immunity and health are not treated.
Symptoms of mites and lice infestation
You can determine that sheep are infected with ticks by signs such as severe itching (animals begin to rub against objects and bite themselves in irritated places). Over time, the fur becomes matted and falls out. Bare areas may form, the skin on them will be red, rough, and scratched. As a result of scabies, adult animals and lambs gradually lose their appetite, become exhausted, and the death of individual individuals may occur.
Ticks reproduce quickly and can cover an animal's body in relatively little time.
Chronic mite infestation can also occur in lambs; young sheep also lose weight, do not grow, and their wool falls off. Since heat has a negative effect on ticks, in the summer they hide in the folds of the skin of sheep and rams, and the disease becomes chronic.
Methods for controlling ticks
Once the cause has been determined, tick extermination must begin immediately. This can be done by treating with synthetic veterinary preparations or folk remedies.
Contact methods
The principle of their action is that the drug is applied to the skin and comes into direct contact with the parasites. Products for contact application are used externally only. The choice depends on the time of year. So, in the summer it is easier to bathe animals in solutions of the drug. Before this you need to cut the hair. Treatment is carried out with preparations based on diazinon. Dissolve the powder in water and bathe the sheep there for 0.5-1 minutes. Another treatment is done after 2 weeks. When diluting, you must follow the dosage and rules for preparing the solution.
In winter they are treated with sprays and powders. The preparations are applied to places where animals cannot reach, on a clean and dry skin surface. Carry out 2-3 times of treatment with an interval of 1.5-2 weeks.
Injections
If conventional treatment for ixodid and other ticks does not produce an effect, drugs are used that are administered into the animal’s body by injection. They use such products as “Ivermec”, “Iverlong” (based on ivermectin). Usually, a single treatment with Ivermek (0.2 ml per 10 kg of sheep weight) is enough for the mites to disappear. You can treat with such drugs both in summer and winter.
Traditional methods
Safe traditional methods are often used by farmers as medicine for adult animals and lambs. If you find a tick, you should not tear it off the skin; you should drop oil on it, and after a while it will fall off on its own. Animals are also treated with aromatic oils of geranium and lavender. Drops are dripped over the sheep's body, especially behind the ears and in the groin.You can spread it with a mixture of vegetable oil and tar, or machine oil. They are applied in stripes over the entire body of the animal.
How to rid sheep of lice
In addition to ticks, sheep can be bothered by lice, which are also difficult to remove. To destroy them, preparations in the form of powders, aerosols and injections have been developed and used. At least 2 treatments are required, since the drugs act on adults and larvae, while the eggs remain alive. After some time, a new generation of parasites emerges from them.
Lice can appear on sheep at any time of the year, so it is necessary to inspect the animals at all times. The damage they cause will not lead to death, but will also reduce the productivity of the sheep. Parasites appear in those individuals who live in insufficiently cleaned rooms, which is why the wool is not in the best condition. Infection occurs when housing is crowded; animals on grazing are less likely to become infected.
Signs of lice in sheep are itching, biting, and restlessness exhibited by infected animals. If you look closely at the skin during examination, you will notice that there are scratched and reddened areas. Lice and nits can be seen on the fur.
Powders
Deltamethrin powder is used for external treatment. Spread evenly over the area of the sheep's body, slightly rubbing into the skin. Exceptions are the mucous membranes. To treat the entire body, you need to take 1 g for every 5 kg of mass. The second treatment with the drug is done after 12-14 days.
Aerosols
It is convenient to use products in the form of aerosols if there are few animals on the farm and you can pay attention to each one. The drug, for example, “Extrazol M”, “Bars”, “Acrodex”, is applied to the skin where sheep cannot lick it off. In 5-7 seconds. 10 cubic meters need to be processed. cm.animal body. In total, you need to carry out 2-3 sprayings with an interval of 10-12 days. Aerosols can also be used to treat rooms where sick individuals, their feeders, care items, and equipment are kept. In addition to the listed drugs, Insectol, Diazinon, and Dichlorvos are used.
Folk recipes
You can try to remove lice by treating the skin with ash or pyrethrum, a solution of vinegar or kerosene, fresh wormwood, or tar. However, in most cases they are ineffective or only effective if there are few lice.
What danger do parasites pose?
Ticks not only draw nutrients from the body of sheep, thereby weakening them, but also transmit infectious diseases. Animals infected with ticks and lice produce less milk, and their coat quality deteriorates sharply. With severe infestation, anemia may develop, often accompanied by concomitant diseases, for example, infections or helminthiasis.
The skin at the site of the bites can become inflamed, thickened and infected, the hair falls out, and reddened and combed skin can be seen underneath.
Parasites can also be dangerous to humans, so anyone who works with sheep needs to be especially careful in this regard.
Preventive actions
To avoid treating sheep for ticks, care must be taken to reduce the likelihood of parasite infestation. Firstly, you need to carefully examine the surface of the skin and coat from time to time in order to detect the presence of parasites in time. This is especially true in the spring, when ticks become active. If they are found on any individual, you need to immediately separate it from the rest and transfer it to a separate room. You can return back only after complete recovery.
Secondly, treat not only the infected animal with drugs, but also the entire livestock prophylactically. Clear the stall of bedding and manure, burn the wool shorn from sick sheep. Treat the sheepfold with creolin, chlorophos, Lysol, repeat after 2 weeks to minimize re-infection with the next generation of lice. When purchasing new animals, inspect their fur and quarantine them for a while.
Any domestic sheep can become infected with ticks and lice. This can happen on pasture or after contact with sick animals. Treatment for parasites - treatment with anti-acaricidal veterinary drugs. Not only infected individuals, but also everyone else on the farm must undergo treatment. Untreated animals reduce productivity, may suffer from infectious diseases or even die.
