Haematological Parameters: Indicators of the Physiological Status of Farm Animals

This review examined haematological parameters as indicators of the physiological status of farm animals. Blood is important and reliable medium for assessing the physiological and health status of farm animals and haematology is the study of the morphology and physiology of blood. Haematological parameters are those parameters that are related to the blood and blood forming organs. Haematological analysis involves the determination of the various blood parameters and the parameters include erythrocyte (red blood cells (RBC)), leucocyte (white blood cells (WBC)), Packed Cell Volumes (PCV) among others. Haematological examination is among the methods which may contribute to the detection of some changes in health and physiological status, which may not be apparent during physical examination but which affect the fitness of the animal. Thus, haematological parameters are good indicators of the physiological status of farm animals. Furthermore, there is a great variation in haematological parameters of farm animals caused by several factors. There is therefore, the need to investigate these factors and how they affect blood parameters. This will help to establish appropriate physiological baseline values for various livestock.