Introduction: Toxoplasma gondii (an intracellular protozoan) causes toxoplasmosis in warm-blooded animals, including humans and dogs. The present study was carried out to investigate the seroprevalence of canine toxoplasmosis in the owned and stray populations of dogs in Faisalabad District, Punjab, Pakistan. Materials and Methods: Commercially available Latex Agglutination Test (LAT) kits were used for the screening of samples (139 stray and 150 owned), followed by confirmation through ELISA. For the statistical analyses, chi-square was used to correlate the prevalence of toxoplasmosis with various factors. Results: The overall prevalence of toxoplasmosis, determined by the LAT, was 22.5% and, by ELISA, was 21.8%. A nonsignificant association of toxoplasmosis was determined among owned and stray dogs. Among owned dog breeds, Bulldogs showed 28.30% prevalence, and among stray dogs, the highest prevalence was determined in Bhakarwal dogs (39.29%). Young and female dogs showed a slightly higher prevalence of toxoplasmosis than adults and males, respectively. Conclusions: The present study determined by LAT and ELISA in owned dogs showed the same results, while a little variation was found in the stray dogs. It is concluded that both owned and stray dogs are infected with toxoplasmosis in Faisalabad District, and based on this, it is recommended that province-wide epidemiological studies be carried out to examine the prevalence of Toxoplasma and develop policies in order to control toxoplasmosis.

Small ruminants, especially goats, play an important role in the livestock economy of the world. Parasitism is one of the major problems facing goat populations around the world and is responsible for production losses. To control these kinds of losses and improve production, a timely diagnosis of parasitic infection is crucial. The improvement and development of conventional and molecular diagnostic tests help a lot with the early detection of parasitic infections. Strategies to use different control measures like chemotherapy, phytotherapy, pasture management, the use of bioactive crops, biological control measures, and the development of vaccines also help to improve the health and production of goats.

The current study was designed to check the anthelmintic activities of some local plants. Seeds of Amomum (A.) subulatum and Vitex (V.) negundo in different solvents were subjected to in vitro (adult motility assay; AMA and egg hatch assay; EHA) and in vivo (faecal egg count reduction test; FECRT) anthelmintic activity testing protocols using Haemonchus (H.) contortus as an experimental model. The results of AMA, EHA, and FECRT were statistically analysed through linear regression and Duncan multiple range test. In AMA test, at 50 mg mL^-1 concentration, the percent mortality of H. contortus was higher in A. subulatum than V. negundo, whereas, in EHA test, A. subulatum was proven better ovicidal (LC₅₀=14.2 µg mL^-1) than V. negundo (LC₅₀= 65.7405 µg mL^-1). The FECRT also indicated the better efficacy of A. subulatum than V. negundo against natural infection of gastrointestinal (GI) parasites. The crude powder of plants used in this study showed 29.6% to 57.7% anthelmintic. The reduction rate was found higher for A. subulatum (3 g kg^-1) as compared to V. negundo (7 g kg^-1). Reagrding efficacy analysis of solvents used for plants extract, ethyl acetate and chloroform were found better in increasing ovicidal activity in adult worms (in vitro testing), whereas, the crude aqueous methanol was found better than the crude powders in in vivo testing. It will be beneficial to document the indigenous knowledge to standard scientific procedures for their validation. This study will help to motivate the farmers to make a better choice of cultivation of the indigenous plants because of their varying efficacies as an alternative preventive approach against the GI parasitic infections.

Theileria sp. (Piroplasmida: Theileriidae) is one of the most widely known infections transmitted by hard ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) and has been linked to significant economic losses across the globe. The study’s main emphasis was theileriosis, a disease that is common in Pakistan and has an incidence ranging from 0.6% to 33%. Through DNA screening of the vector ticks and host blood, this study sought to determine the risk of tick-borne theileriosis in populations of buffalos (Bubalus bubalis) and cattle (Bos indicus) in Toba Tek Singh district of Punjab, Pakistan. Identified tick species include Hyalomma anatolicum (35.4%), Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus (30.2%), and R. sanguineus (25%). Tick specimens were collected from animals and their respective microenvironments. PCR assays targeting Theileria annulata were used to investigate the infection in the DNA extracted from the collected blood samples from large ruminants and salivary glands (SGs) of the Hyalomma ticks. The 18S rRNA of T. annulata was amplified using specific primers. Positive T. annulata amplicons were sequenced and verified using BLAST analysis. Overall, 50% of SGs contained T. annulate DNA. Female ticks, and those collected from cattle and from riverine environments had significantly higher (p < 0.05) rates of Theileria infection in their acini. Overall prevalence of Theileria infection was 35.9% in blood collected from large ruminants. Cattle had a substantially greater frequency of bovine theileriosis (43.2%) than buffalos (28.7%). Age and sex of large ruminants were significantly positively associated (p < 0.05) with Theileria infection. Furthermore, compared to non-riverine cattle (35%) and buffalo (19.5%), riverine cattle (52.2%) and buffalo (36.2%) showed a considerably higher prevalence. The results of this study, which is the first in Pakistan to examine the blood of large ruminants and vectorial function of Ixodid ticks in the transmission of T. annulata along with associated risk factors, offer an important insight for risk assessment of Theileria infection in livestock using vectorial infectivity.

The current study was aimed to corelates the association of different risk factors with tick infestation rate in livestock (cattle, buffalo, sheep, goat) population of district Faisalabad. Ticks were collected through the standard collection protocols, were identified under stereomicroscope. Overall, 54%, 50%, 50% and 49 % tick infestation rate reported from livestock species (cattle, buffalo, sheep, goat) and higher prevalence was observed in tehsil Tandlianwala (72%, 65%, 70% and 57%). Among intrinsic factors (age and sex) higher prevalence was reported in young (7-12 months) and female animals. Significant association (P<0.05) was observed with season and tick prevalence and higher prevalence was reported in summer season. Statistically significant association (P<0.05) was observed among extrinsic factors including feeding system, (higher infestation was reported in grazing animals), housing system (higher rate was recorded in free-housed animals), type of farming (higher rate in free-ranged animals), farm structure (higher infestation rate among animals kept on uncemented floor) and hygienic measures (higher prevalence in poorly hygiene animals). Most prevalent tick species were H. anatolicum, (85%), H. marginatum (1.5%), H. turncatum (1.02%) and R. microplus (12%). These findings will be helpful in devising services for tick infestation control in selected area and other regions having similar husbandry system.