Dynamics of gastrointestinal parasitoses in goats kept in organic and conventional production systems in Brazil

The objectives of this paper were to analyze the dynamics of gastrointestinal helminthiasis in Saanen goats maintained in organic and conventional milk production systems during pregnancy, parturition and lactation. In the conventional system, the animals were kept under continuous grazing and dewormed monthly. In the organic system, no anthelminthics were used, the animals were kept under rotational grazing and separated by age. The goats in the organic systemic had higher fecal egg counts (p < 0.05) than the goats in the conventional system during pregnancy and parturition, with no statistical difference (p > 0.05) during lactation. The peripartum period was a risk factor for the occurrence of clinical parasitism in animals with a greater predisposition in the herd, thereby increasing the infestation of pastures. In the conventional system, even with monthly deworming, the animals were moderately infected, thus demonstrating the possibility that helminth resistance or high reinfection rates might develop. Although no anthelminthics were used in the animals raised in the organic system, they showed a moderate degree of infection, thus indicating that management might be present a viable option for sustained helminth control.