Anthelmintic Potency of Neem (Azadirachta indica) Leaf Meal on West African Dwarf (WAD) Sheep

Abstract

A 90-day study was conducted to determine the response of semi intensively managed West African dwarf sheep to concentrate supplement containing varying levels of neem leaf meal (NLM). Twenty (20) West African Dwarf sheep aged 5 to 6 months with an average weight of 10kg were used in a Completely Randomized Design with animals grouped into four treatments of five replicates each balanced for weight. The animals were allowed to graze on natural pastures predominantly made up of Panicum maximum in the morning with a daily supplementation of 100g concentrate diet containing varying levels of neem leaf meal at 0, 5, 10 and 15%. Blood samples were taken from the animals before the commencement of the experiment and at the end of the experiment. At the start of the experiment, faecal samples were collected from each animal to determine the faecal egg count and this was repeated once in three weeks for the 90 day experimental period. There was significant (P < 0.05) difference in the haematology indices studied with no definate pattern. The inclusion of NLM in the diets of West African Dwarf sheep significantly (P < 0.05) reduced the faecal egg counts across the treatments with a percentage reduction range of 33.38 to 88.00% for sheep on 0% and 5% NLM, respectively. This study, however, concluded that neem leaf inclusion at 5% in West African dwarf sheep’s diet had effects on the overall performance of the animals with a potential improvement in drastic reduction in faecal egg counts.