Prevalence and Species Composition of Endoparasites in Hobby and Meat Rabbits in Eastern Slovakia with Special Focus on Eimeria spp.

Abstract

Endoparasitosis in rabbits often represents a hidden problem and causes serious financial loss to breeders as it occurs without any evident clinical symptoms. The subject of the present investigation was to identify the rate of prevalence of endoparasites, with special attention being paid to coccidiosis. The investigation was carried out at selected rabbit farms in five villages in the Gelnica District in Eastern Slovakia in the period from September 2019 to August 2020. A total of 87 faecal samples were examined using the flotation method and the McMaster technique. Of these, 83 samples tested positive for intestinal parasites, representing a positivity rate of 95.4%. Coccidian oocysts of Eimeria spp. were present in all positive samples, and Passalurus ambiguus eggs were found in six cases (7.2%). The overall oocyst counts for Eimeria spp. ranged from 50 to 27,000 oo-cysts per gram (OPG), while the egg counts of P. ambiguus ranged from 50 to 250 eggs per gram (EPG). To determine the species composition of the genus Eimeria , molecular analysis of the first internal transcribed spacer (ITS-1) region of ribosomal DNA was performed on selected samples with the highest concentrations of oocysts. The analysis revealed the presence of five coccidian species: Eimeria magna, Eimeria flavescens, Eimeria piriformis , Eimeria irresidua, and one unidentified Eimeria sp.