Comparing therapeutic efficacy between ivermectin, selamectin, and moxidectin in canaries during natural infection with Dermanyssus gallinae.

The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy of three spot-on drugs on canaries during Dermanyssus gallinae natural infections and during the breeding season. Three groups of canary couples (seven couples each) were included: group A was treated with ivermectin, B with selamectin, and C with moxidectin. All the drugs were administered topically infrascapularly. The parasitic charge was estimated before the treatment (t(0)) and after 8 (t(1)), 16 (t(2)), 24 (t(3)), and 32 (t(4)) days following the initial treatment. No significant differences were detected among the three tested drugs for the five repeats for each of the four mite stages (egg, larva, nymphs, and fed and unfed adults). With regard to the decrease in the mean numbers of red mites, ivermectin and selamectin exerted their efficacy at t(2), contrary to moxidectin at t(3).