Chicken Coccidiosis in Peri-Urban Family Farming in Two South American Countries: Prevalence and Circulating Eimeria spp.

Family poultry production systems (FPPSs) in Chile and Argentina produce high-quality and nutritious food. However, little is known about chicken coccidiosis in these production systems. This work aimed to determine the <i>Eimeria</i> sp. positivity rate, circulating species, general farm management, and knowledge of the disease in FPPSs by gaining access to peri-urban markets in these two countries. The overall <i>Eimeria</i> sp. positivity rate, determined in 88 fecal samples, was 85.1%. Oocysts per gram in Argentinean meat-producing FPPSs were significantly higher than in Argentinean and Chilean egg-producing FPPSs. Multiplex-PCR based on seven <i>Eimeria</i> spp. Sequence-Characterized Amplified Region (SCAR) markers showed a great diversity of circulating species, with <i>E. mitis</i> (70.3%), <i>E. acervulina</i> (62.2%), and <i>E. tenella</i> (59.5%), followed by <i>E. maxima</i> (43.2%), <i>E. praecox</i> (32.4%), <i>E. necatrix</i> (18.9%), and <i>E. brunetti</i> (5.4%). Low awareness among family producers and low implementation of control measures were found. Importantly, pathogenic species were found even in asymptomatic chickens, which represents a potential chicken health threat. Furthermore, the administration of sulfonamides to broilers with clinical signs poses a risk of environmental contamination. This is the first comprehensive cross-sectional study showing that <i>Eimeria</i> sp. is a persistent parasite in peri-urban FPPSs in Argentina and Chile.