A FIVE-YEAR RETROSPECTIVE ANALYSIS OF PESTE DES PETITS RUMINANTS CASES PRESENTED TO THE TAMALE VETERINARY CLINIC, GHANA

Peste des petits ruminants (PPR) remains an important transboundary animal disease that has been targeted for eradication worldwide. Despite efforts to control and eradicate the disease globally, it continues to pose a major threat to the livestock industry in many parts of the world, including Ghana. This five-year retrospective study was conducted to determine the distribution of PPR cases presented to the Tamale Veterinary Clinic in Ghana between January 2018 and December 2022. A total of 2395 sheep and goats were presented to the Tamale Veterinary Clinic during the study period based on the clinical patient records. All cases positive for PPR were identified and information on species affected, sex, age, patient’s location and month of year to allowed studying the disease trends. Data were analysed in R version 4.3.1. A significantly higher prevalence of PPR (X²=59.4, Df=1, P<0.001) was observed in goats (18.1%) than in sheep (7.6%). The PPR prevalence in male animals was 12.3% (117/953). The highest prevalence (17.6%) of PPR was recorded in March. In the first quarter of the years studied, (Jan-Mar), the PPR prevalence was 14.5%. The overall prevalence of PPR during the study period was 11.9% (284/2395). Based on our findings, it was concluded that Peste des petits ruminants is endemic in Tamale Metropolis of Ghana, providing a basis for advocacy for implementation of preventive and control measures.