Cryptosporidiosis in Calves, Lambs and Goat Kids in Bishoftu, Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia

A cross sectional study was carried out from November 2014 to April 2015 to determine the prevalence of Cryptosporidiosis in calves, lambs and goat kids and to assess potential risk factors in Bishoftu, of Oromia regional state, Ethiopia. Hence, fecal samples from a total of 364 study animals (214 calves, 89 lambs and 61 kids) were examined with Sheather’s flotation technique and Modified Ziehl-Neelsen Staining. Accordingly, the overall prevalence was found to be 14%. The prevalence of 13.6% (29/214) in calves, 16.9% (15/89) in lambs and 11.5% (7/61), in kids were recorded. There was a significant difference (P < 0.05) in the prevalence of cryptosporidiosis between diarrheic and non-diarrheic animals. There was no statistically significant variation (P>0.05) observed in the prevalence of Cryptosporidium infection between the study sites, animal species and among age groups. In conclusion, this study demonstrated the importance of Cryptosporidium in young ruminants with a higher prevalence among diarrheic animals than non diarrheic ones.