Worms & Liver Fluke in Cattle & Buffalo

What are worms and liver fluke?

Worms are parasites that live inside the animal. Roundworms in the stomach and gut are the most common. Some, such as the barber's pole worm, suck blood and cause anaemia. Buffalo calves often get a large roundworm called Toxocara, passed on through the mother's milk. Tapeworms may be seen as white segments in the dung. Lungworms live in the airways and cause coughing.

Liver fluke is a flat, leaf-shaped worm that lives in the liver and bile ducts. Its young stages grow inside water snails, so animals that graze near ponds, canals, rice fields or waterlogged land are most at risk. Rumen fluke is another fluke of cattle and buffaloes, and its young stages in the gut can cause diarrhoea. Heavy burdens lower milk yield and growth, even when the animal does not look sick.

Signs to watch for

Common signs include:

• Weight loss or poor growth
• A drop in milk
• A rough, dull coat
• Diarrhoea or soft dung
• Pale gums and eyes
• A soft swelling under the jaw (bottle jaw)
• A pot belly in calves

Not every animal shows every sign. Many animals with worms look healthy, and a dung test is the way to know.

Which lab tests help

Fresh dung is the main sample. Collect it fresh into a clean, closed container, or ask your vet to take it. A Faecal Flotation Test (Worm Eggs & Oocysts) makes roundworm eggs and coccidia float up so they can be seen under a microscope. Fluke eggs are heavy and do not float well, so a Faecal Sedimentation Test (Fluke Eggs) is used for liver and rumen fluke.

The Fecal Worm Egg Count for Cattle & Buffalo counts the eggs in a weighed amount of dung, which helps your vet judge how heavy the burden is. Your vet may repeat it later to check how well the herd's worm control is working. The Lungworm Larvae Detection (Baermann Test) collects lungworm larvae from fresh dung that has not been kept in a fridge.

Eggs are passed on and off, and young flukes lay no eggs, so one negative test does not rule worms out. Blood tests can add detail: a Complete Blood Count (CBC) shows anaemia, Protein Total, Albumin, Globulin shows protein loss, and GGTP (Gamma Glutamyl Transpeptidase) can show liver damage from flukes.

A registered veterinarian interprets every result together with the herd's signs and history.

When to see your vet

See your vet promptly if animals lose weight, drop in milk, have diarrhoea or show pale gums or bottle jaw. A weak, very pale animal needs a vet the same day. Regular dung tests on a few animals can show when the herd needs attention. Ask your vet about a worm and fluke prevention plan for your herd.

Testing in Bhopal

Pashupatinath Vet Lab is at C-200, C Sector, Shahpura, Bhopal. Dung samples are collected free anywhere in Bhopal. From other districts, samples can be sent by courier, by bus parcel or through your local vet; call or WhatsApp +91 88175 01118 so the lab can coordinate. Reports are shared on WhatsApp, by e-mail and in My Reports on the website.