An ethnoveterinary survey of medicinal plants used to treat poultry diseases in drylands of Zimbabwe

Background: The major constraints in the production of poultry by rural farmers include predation, poor nutrition and diseases leading to high mortality rates. Conventional drugs are either unavailable or too expensive for resource-poor farmers. Methods: An ethnoveterinary survey was done in Chiredzi, Chivi and Mwenezi districts of Masvingo province in order to identify diseases that affect poultry in drylands and to identify plants that are used to treat the diseases. Two hundred and seventy farmers were interviewed through a semi-structured questionnaire in vernacular language. Frequency of responses was obtained using IBM SPSS Statistics 23 and informant consensus factor (FiC) for different ailments were calculated. Scoring and ranking was done to identify the most used Aloe species in treating poultry diseases. Results: Twelve poultry ailments were identified with diarrhoea (46.7%) being the most common. Thirty-two plant species were used in the study area for managing poultry diseases. Respiratory diseases had the highest FiC of 0.87. Aloe species were mentioned by 74.4% of the respondents. Of the Aloe species available and used in the districts; Aloe aculeata was the most used for managing poultry ailments. Most of the plants reported as being used to treat poultry diseases belonged to the Fabaceae family. Leaves were the most used plant part for treating poultry ailments. Conclusions: Thirty-two plants from twenty plant families were used to treat various poultry ailments in dryland communities in Chiredzi, Chivi and Mwenezi. Aloe species were the most used plants. Aloe aculeata and Lippia oatessi have not been previously reported as being used for poultry health management. This study is useful in providing documentation of ethnoveterinary plants utilized by Zimbabwean dryland inhabitants to manage poultry health. Keywords: Ethnoveterinary, poultry, parasites, diseases, drylands, herbal, traditional, conventional