%0 Journal Article
%T Ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants used in the treatment of animal diarrhoea in Plateau State, Nigeria
%A Nkechi V Offiah
%A Sunday Makama
%A Ishaku L Elisha
%A Micah S Makoshi
%A Jurbe G Gotep
%A Christiana J Dawurung
%A Olusola O Oladipo
%A Ann S Lohlum
%A David Shamaki
%J BMC Veterinary Research
%D 2011
%I BioMed Central
%R 10.1186/1746-6148-7-36
%X A total of 248 questionnaires were completed, out of which 207 respondents (83.47%) acknowledged the use of herbs in diarrhoea management, while 41 (16.53%) do not use herbs or apply other traditional methods in the treatment of diarrhoea in their animals. Medicinal plants cited as beneficial in the treatment of animal diarrhoea numbered 132, from which 57(43.18%) were scientifically identified and classified into 25 plant families with the families Fabaceae (21%) and Combretaceae (14.04%) having the highest occurrence. The plant parts mostly used in antidiarrhoeal herbal preparations are the leaves (43.86%) followed by the stem bark (29.82%). The herbal preparations are usually administered orally.Rural communities in Plateau State are a rich source of information on medicinal plants as revealed in this survey. There is need to scientifically ascertain the authenticity of the claimed antidiarrhoeal properties of these plants and perhaps develop more readily available alternatives in the treatment of diarrhoea.Herbal medicine has long been recognized as one of the oldest forms of remedies used by humans [1]. Many people in developing countries still rely on traditional healing practices and medicinal plants for their daily healthcare needs, in spite of the advancement in modern medicine [2]. There is abundant undocumented traditional knowledge of herbal remedies used to treat diseases in most cultures [3]. Different traditional healing practices worldwide are designed for either therapeutic or prophylactic use in human or animal diseases [4,5]. Several studies carried out in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and North America show that plants are routinely used as remedy for animal diseases [6-11]. Historically, it is documented that humans utilize the same herbal preparations that they use to treat their sick animals [1]. In Nigeria, farmers are known to treat animal diseases with herbs and other traditional medical practices before the advent of orthodox medicin
%U http://www.biomedcentral.com/1746-6148/7/36