AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH COMMUNICATION CENTRE www.arccjournals.com *Corresponding author’s e-mail: daraashiq09@gmail.com Indian J. Anim. Res., 53 (3) 2019: 394-398 Print ISSN:0367-6722 / Online ISSN:0976-0555 Therapeutic effect of traditionally prepared Mattha/ buttermilk and Chedu/ ghee residue on parasitic load and body coat of Murrah buffalo calves Ramesh Singh, Sanjay Kumar, D.V. Singh, Aashaq Hussain Dar* and Jyoti Palod Department of Livestock Production Management, College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, G.B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar-263 145, Uttarakh47and, India. Received: 03-10-2017 Accepted: 20-12-2017 DOI: 10.18805/ijar.B-3508 ABSTRACT As per Indian system of medicine (Ayurveda), Mattha is helpful in maintaining gut health, mitigation of kappa and vata and preventing obesity. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of mattha and chedu on parasitic load of Murrah calves. 1-year-old twenty growing buffalo calves with approximately similar weight were selected and divided into four groups having five animals in each group. Following treatments were offered: – T 0 (control), T 1 (application of Chedu on their body), T 2 (Administration of Mattha @ 2% of body weight with salt @ 0.5% of Mattha), T 3 (Administration of Mattha and application of Chedu). Fecal samples were collected directly from rectum or freshly voided feces in sterilized poly bags, twice a month from buffalo calves to check the internal parasitic load. Number of ticks, were counted in most heavily infested area i.e. inguinal region, brisket region, neck region, tail fold, and base of the ear after every 4 days. From 30 th day to 90 th day there was a significant difference observed in terms of eggs per gram (EPG) in treatment groups T 2 and T 3 with respect to control group indicating lower parasitic load in treated groups. Application of chedu in T 1 and T 3 group resulted in gradual decrease of tick load which depicts therapeutic value of chedu and combination of mathha and chedu on ticks. Also chedu treated groups showed increased lusture of body coat which is desirable in terms of aesthetic value and wellbeing of buffalo calves. Key words: Body coat, Chedu, Eggs per gram, Mattha, Ticks. INTRODUCTION Murrah is the highest milk producer among dairy buffaloes in India. There is a preference for buffalo milk over cow milk in India. Calves are future herds, so they should be cared and managed well for lifetime optimum production. Overall dairy farm profit can be maximized by reducing calf mortality, better managemental practices and supplementation of the good nutrients and feed additives. Some traditional feeding practices have been found to be very effective in increasing overall development of domestic animals. Foods prepared by traditional fermentation techniques have positive effect on gut health, digestibility and enhance nutritional as well as therapeutic value in humans. Increased digestibility of some nutrients, better microbial balance with improvement in haematology in dogs supplemented with traditional dahi has been reported (Kore et al., 2012). The parasitic load not only cause mortality in calves but also hampers their growth which inturn increase the time to get optimum weight for puberty. Till now many feed additives and other supplements have been tried in animal feeds. But little work has been done on indigenous (desi) milk byproducts. Mattha (Butter milk) is fermented milk by-product commonly used in tropical and subtropical climates and is obtained from liquid left over after extracting butter from churned yoghurt or cream (Marcelade et al., 2010; Linjarak et al., 2006).In Ayurveda butter milk is known by the name Takra. As per Indian system of traditional medicine (Ayurveda),Mattha is helpful in maintaining gut health, mitigation of kappa and vata and preventing obesity. Astringent property of buttermilk makes it useful in treatment of acne. Mattha is easily digestible traditionally made by removing butter from curd, white to light reddish in color. It is churned using hand or blender, the butter (white butter) comes to top and thin liquid at the bottom(Muhlke, 2009). It is lower in fat but high in potassium, vitamin B 12 , calcium, riboflavin and phosphorus. It has got many properties like natural antioxidant (Wong and Kitts, 2003) detoxification of body toxins, flushing of the intestines, constipation relief and replenishment of intestinal flora. Mattha is also known to be useful in treatment of hematuria (Tiwari and Pande, 2010) and aneroxia(Kumar and Bharti, 2012) in animals. Chedu (Ghee residue) is the brown color residue that is obtained after preparation of ghee.Chedu has antioxidant property due to high phospholipids. It is a good source of protein and energy. As Chedu have some fat content and due to peculiar smell it also acts as tick repellant and this property can be used to control the ectoparasites. By controlling ectoparasites it gives shiny glossy appearance to