Dealing with barber’s pole worm in sheep and goats

In a series of trials among Dohne Merino on Wauldby Farm in the Eastern Cape’s Stutterheim district, Greta Snyman (Grootfontein Agricultural Development Institute) and Alan Fisher (Queenstown Provincial Veterinary Laboratory) sought to establish protocols for selection for resistance against barber’s pole worm (Haemonchus contortus).

This pest is a roundworm that grows up to 30mm long and sucks blood from the lining of the sheep’s stomach, causing anaemia. Symptoms include swelling under the jaw (bottle jaw), weight loss and reduced wool growth and tensile strength. In lactating ewes, milk production can decline. More severe infections can