Are current practices of yak herdsmen adequate to combat Coenurosis in Laya Bhutan?

Abstract

Background: Coenurosis, known commonly as gid, is caused by a tapeworm Taenia multiceps. It is a disease of small ruminants globally but also occurs in large ruminants, especially in yak in the Himalaya. Gid is a pathological condition in young yaks, mostly below 3 years of age. The infected animal displays a circling movement with the head tilting towards the location of the cyst of a tapeworm on the cerebral surface of the brain.

Objective: We conducted a study with the primary aim to gain an insight into yak herdsmen's practices to manage Coenurosis in the Laya administrative block of Bhutan.

Methods: All seven villages of Laya were included for sampling. Seventy-five out of 182 households owned yaks, and 54 yak-owning households were selected randomly. The government livestock officials of nine yak-rearing highland districts were also included in the study. A cross-sectional study was conducted based on a questionnaire survey and focussed mainly on herdsmen's practices to manage gid. Two sets of questionnaires were used for yak herders and livestock officials. Each predesigned questionnaire was semi-structured and consisted of both open- and closed-ended questions.

Results: The study revealed gid as a major cause of yak mortality. Gid occurred more in winter during migration and most herders lost one to three yaks annually. Herdsmen kept an average of two watchdogs and dewormed them once annually. Similarly, calves were also dewormed once annually. The carcasses of dead yaks were fed to dogs. Livestock officials were optimistic about controlling the disease in the future, despite the yak areas being difficult to access. Most herders had not attended the gid awareness programme. The animal health worker visited herds once annually. In absence of animal health workers, most herdsmen resorted to different practices to treat affected yaks -the most common practice being surgery. Gid was mentioned to harm herdsmen's economy.

Conclusions: The study concluded that for effective management of gid in Laya, livestock agencies must create more awareness on gid, increase the frequency of visits by animal health workers to yak herds, and increase the frequency of deworming of watchdogs and calves.

Keywords: Taenia multiceps; coenurosis; gid; herdsmen; watchdogs; yak.