Tapeworms of Sheep and Goats

Tapeworms of sheep and goats in Australia can be divided into 2 broad groups:

1. Adult tapeworms that live in the small intestine:
   • Moniezia expansa, the most common tapeworm of sheep and goats lives in the small intestine and is often detected when mature segments (proglottids) are shed from the posterior end of the tapeworm and passed in the host’s dung. These segments look like white grains of cooked rice, but when freshly deposited, appear long and flat.
2. Immature or larval (cystic) stages of tapeworms that occur within organs of sheep or goats, with adult tapeworms in the dog:
   • Hydatid tapeworm: Echinococcus granulosus. This name is used in both the predator host (dog) and the prey hosts (sheep and goats)
   • Sheep measles: Taenia ovis in the dog, Cysticercus ovis in sheep and goats
   • Bladder worm: Taenia hydatigena in the dog, Cysticercus tenuicollis in sheep and goats