Abstract
The development of turkey farming is significantly restrained by parasitic diseases, which have become widespread and cause significant economic losses to specialized- and homestead farms. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of endoparasites in turkeys of different age groups under different maintenance systems and the nature of patho-anatomical changes depending on the course of the disease. A total of 1,869 samples of fecal from turkeys were studied. From turkeys kept in poultry houses, 925 fecal samples and 944 fecal samples from free-range turkeys were examined. In turkeys that were kept in a poultry house, the total infection with endoparasites was 59.8 %, while in free range, it was 63.3 %. The most common in turkeys 30-60 days old from poultry houses are Histomonas meleagridis (21.5 %), Eimeria spp. (11.5 %) and Cryptosporidium baileyi (15.5 %) and in free-range turkeys - Histomonas meleagridis (15.6 %), Eimeria spp. (7.2 %) and Cryptosporidium baileyi (10.8 %). Cryptosporidium baileyi was not observed in turkeys 360 days old or older. Tetratrichomonas gallinarum was most frequently recorded in turkeys 90 - 120 days old from poultry houses (3.8 %) and turkeys 150 - 180 days old in free range (3.7 %). Ascaridia dissimilis is most common in free-range turkeys 90 - 120 days old (11.8 %) and turkeys 150 - 180 days old from poultry houses (9.5 %). Heterakis gallinarum was primarily recorded in turkeys 150 - 180 days old under both systems of keeping with a value range from 16.2 to 17.2 %. Infestation of 150 - 180-day-old free-range turkeys by cestodes Davainea meleagridis and Raillietina echinobothrida was 15.0 % and 12.9 %, respectively. Thus, the diversity and prevalence of gastrointestinal tract invasions depend on the age and housing system of the poultry.