Mexican cattle experts promote integrated tick-control strategies
The common cattle tick, Rhipicephalus microplus, is a major sanitary and economic problem for grazing operations in Mexico’s tropical and subtropical regions, according to the article. Infestations are associated with lower weight gains, reduced milk output and poorer hide quality. The parasite also transmits pathogens linked to bovine babesiosis and anaplasmosis, diseases that can increase mortality and affect the profitability of cattle units.
Resistance to widely used acaricides has become a central concern in cattle-producing areas. The article attributes the loss of treatment effectiveness to repeated, empirical and incorrectly dosed use of several chemical groups, including organophosphates, synthetic pyrethroids, amidines and macrocyclic lactones. Specialists recommend establishing the susceptibility profile of each herd before setting treatment schedules or applying topical products.
Laboratory procedures such as larval immersion tests can be used to assess that susceptibility. The results are intended to guide decisions about acaricide use rather than relying on a fixed programme applied without regard to the herd’s response. The proposed model is known as Integrated Tick Control, or CIG, and is designed to reduce reliance on chemical treatments alone.
Pasture management forms part of the model. Planned rotational grazing and scheduled resting of paddocks interrupt the tick’s non-parasitic, free-living phase. The article says that starvation and exposure to solar drying can increase larval mortality, reducing the parasite burden on pasture without raising input costs.
Other measures include entomopathogenic fungi, particularly Metarhizium anisopliae and Beauveria bassiana, as well as immunogenic vaccines. Genetic and breeding choices are also cited, including the selection of more robust animals and crosses with natural resistance to ectoparasites, such as Bos indicus cattle and their crossbreeds.
Drug applications must also take account of legally required withdrawal periods. Observing those intervals is intended to prevent residues from entering milk and meat supplied to large consumer markets and export channels. The article links sustainable parasite-control programmes with epidemiological monitoring, technical advice, ecosystem management in grazing areas, operational-cost control, preservation of active compounds and food safety.
