Download CrypTick Laboratory - Does sheep drinking water source pose an

Honours Project – Ongoing
Does sheep drinking water source pose an animal health risk?
Short project description & main objectives:
Cryptosporidium and Giardia are protozoan parasites that can cause diarrhoea in a wide range of hosts
including humans, livestock and wild animals. The resistant (oo)cyst stage of both parasites are excreted in
the faeces of infected animals and can survive for long periods (3-6 months) in cool moist environments
including clay based dams commonly used on farms as a drinking water source for livestock. Both
parasites are prevalent in sheep, with lambs most likely to experience diarrhoea, ill-thrift and sometimes
death.
A previous preliminary study showed that lambs which drank water sourced from a dam were more than a
100 times more likely to experience diarrhoea compared to other water sources. This project aims to
determine the prevalence of faecal pathogens (including Cryptosporidium, Giardia Salmonella and E. coli)
in dam water compared to bore or scheme water. Farmers will be recruited to send in water samples
used for livestock from dams, bores and scheme water, which will be tested for Cryptosporidium, Giardia,
Salmonella and E. coli using quantitative PCR’s already developed by our research group.
Positive samples will be genotyped to determine the prevalence of human-infectious species. A
questionnaire will be designed and administered to farmers to determine what proportion of lambs have
access to dam water. The data generated from this study will be used to determine the risks to livestock
from drinking water from dams.
Principal supervisor:
Caroline Jacobson
Other supervisors:
Una Ryan
Contact details for further information:
[email protected]
Closing date for applications:
Ongoing
Start & finish date of project:
S1 or S2 Hons timelines
Available part-time?
Available to international students?
Yes
Yes
School of VLS
31 August 2016