Use of two in vitro methods for the detection of anthelmintic resistant nematode parasites on Slovak sheep farms

A survey of the prevalence of anthelmintic resistant nematode populations was conducted on 32 sheep farms in the Slovak Republic. In vitro egg hatch test and larval development tests were used for the detection of resistance to benzimidazole anthelmintics and they were compared with in vivo faecal egg count reduction tests. There was agreement in the declaration of resistance between the faecal egg count reduction test and both in vitro tests. The presence of resistant populations was determined on two farms using egg hatch test. In both farms, the LD50 values were higher than 0.1 μg TBZ/ml, indicating resistance. By using LD99 values it might be possible to reveal relatively small proportion of resistant larvae in the population. The prevalence of benzimidazole resistance has not change on Slovak sheep farms during last decade.