Background:

Ticks and tick-borne diseases are one of the major problems of public and animal health worldwide. Tick infestation causes economic losses in cattle farms of the Popayán plateau (Cauca, Colombia) due to costs associated with preventive management, decreased production of milk and meat, as well as transmission of diseases such as babesiosis and anaplasmosis.

Objective:

To determine the type and degrees of tick infestation in cattle of the Popayán plateau and its correlation with erythrogram and blood parasites frequency.

Methods:

One-thousand four-hundred forty cattle were evaluated in 144 farms distributed in Popayán, Cajibio, Timbio, Morales, and Piendamó. In each farm ticks were collected, quantified, and identified from 10 bovines of 1 year of age or older regardless of sex or breed. Additionally, a blood sample was taken from five of the animals to evaluate the erythrogram and determine the presence of blood parasites.

Results:

Tick prevalence was 79.5%; of these, 99.6% were Rhipicephalus microplus and 0.4% were Dermacentor nitens. Most cattle (58%) presented medium and high degrees of tick infestations (11 to 50, and more than 50 ticks, respectively) with a weak relationship between the degree of tick infestation and red blood cell counts, and no relationship between the degree of tick infestation and the presence of blood parasites.

Conclusion:

Cattle herds in Popayán plateau have a medium to high degree of tick infestation with R. microplus.

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