Abstract

A cross-sectional study of bovine Trypanosomiases was conducted in Tembaro district of Kembata tembaro zone, Southern Ethiopia. A total of 800 cattle, 400 in the dry and 400 in the wet seasons were randomly selected and examined for Trypanosomiases. The overall prevalence of the disease was 10.9%. T. congolense and T. vivax were detected from buffy coat positive samples. Among the total of 87 trypanosome infections detected in both seasons, 79.3% (69) were due to T. congolense; 18.4 % (16) were due to T. vivax and the rest 2.5% were mixed infections. Age and season of the year were not significantly associated (P>0.05) with the disease. A significant association of the disease was observed (P<0.05) between body condition score and sex. The packed cell volume of trypanosome infected cattle was lower compared with non-infected. According to this study, Bovine Trypanosomiases was the major disease of cattle in the study area. Therefore control of bovine Trypanosomiases should be enhanced systematically to improve livestock production in the area.