Dr. Emma Borkowski has received $70,000 to pursue her research into controlling gastrointestinal nematodes (GINs) in sheep and goats.
The award is from the Livestock Research Innovation Corporation (LRIC) and includes funding from racetracks/casinos at Elora and London.
The nematodes make animals sick, sometimes resulting in death, and reduces their meat, milk and wool production.
The award for Borkowski is The Early Career Research Award funded by LRIC, Grand River Agricultural Society at Elora, Western Fair Association at London, Ontario Agricultural College and Ontario Veterinary College. It was first launched last year and is designed to encourage cross-sectoral and cross-disciplinary approaches to livestock research.
The award is available to faculty from the University of Guelph who are participants in LRIC’s Early Career Mentorship Program.
There are only two medications approved for use on sheep and none for goats and there is increasing resistance to the medications. Elanco has received emergency-use permission to use a drug new to Canada, but it comes with a warning that resistance soon developed after it was approved for use in Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
Many farmers are keeping their flocks indoors so they are not exposed to the parasites in pastures.
Borkowski’s research will focus on understanding and leveraging natural immune responses for GIN control, including being able to breed for better immunity.
