Background: Abortion is considered an important disease problem of small ruminants in Borana pastoral area. A cross-sectional study was conducted to estimate the prevalence and risk factors of chlamydiosis, coxiellosis (Q-fever) and brucellosis in small ruminants in selected districts of Borana zone. Results: A total of 506 sheep and goats were tested using serological tests. Fifty (9.88%; 95% CI: 7.42, 12.82), 144 (28.46%; 95% CI: 24.56, 32.61) and none (0.00%; 95% CI: 0.00, 0.59) of them were positive for chlamydiosis, coxiellosis and brucellosis, respectively. History of abortion was recorded in 136 (32.00%; CI: 27.59, 36.67) of sheep and goats in the study area. The logistic regression analysis, however, showed that statistically significant difference ccurred among districts and between the species of small ruminants. The prevalence odd of antibodies against C. abortus was significantly lower in Miyo, Dire and Teltelle districts compared to Dillo. The odd of infection with this bacterium was lower in sheep than goats. Similarly the odd of infection with C. burnettii was significantly higher in Dillo district than the rest of the districts studied, higher in goats than sheep and higher in adult animals than young ones. Conclusion: High prevalence of abortion is observed in sheep and goats in the study area. High seropositivity of C. burnetii and C. abortus in both sheep and goats tested implies risks of human infection by both diseases. Thus, attention needs to be paid to further study of both diseases in animals and humans in the area.

Respiratory diseases caused by Mannheimia haemolytica (M. haemolytica) and Pasteurella multocida (P. multocida) have been known to result in a considerable loss due to mortality and reduced production. This study aimed at isolation and identification of M. haemolytica and P. multocida associated with pneumonic pasteurellosis in sheep and goats using bacteriological and molecular techniques. Identification of serotypes of M. haemolytica and P. multocida was done using indirect haemagglutination test. The in vitro antimicrobial sensitivity profiles of the M. haemolytica were tested using standard disk diffusion method. A total of 52 and 78 nasal swabs were collected from pneumonic cases for bacterial isolation and identification in Borana and Arsi zone, respectively. Four hundred sera samples were collected for identification of serotypes. The results showed that 17 of 52 (32.69%; 95% CI 20.33, 47.11) nasal swabs collected from pneumonic animals in Borana yielded positive results for Pasteurella/Mannheimia species, 13 (25.00%; 95% CI 14.03, 38.95) of which were M. haemolytica. None of the samples yielded P. multocida. Twenty-three of 78 (29.49%; 95% CI 19.69, 40.89) nasal swabs collected at Arsi from pneumonic animals yielded positive results for M. haemolytica (17) and P. multocida (6). Secondary biochemical characterization revealed that 14 of the 17 isolates conform to M. haemolytica whereas none of the 6 isolates suspected to be P. mutocida were confirmed. Eleven (84.62%) isolates from Borana and 4 (28.57%) from Arsi were confirmed to be M. haemolytica using PCR targeting the Rpt2 genes. Assay for M. haemolytica serotype A1 revealed all belong to A1. None of the isolates with cultural and morphological features of P. multocida gave positive results by molecular assay. Serological assay identified three serotypes of M. haemolytica namely A1, A2 and A7 almost in all of the samples whereas P. multocida serotype A was detected in 78.75% of the samples. The M. haemolytica isolates tested for susceptibility to antibiotics showed resistance against Bacitracin (83.33%) and Penicillin (50.00%) while they were found susceptible to Gentamycin (100%), Chloramphenicol (100%) and Sulfamethoxazole (100%) and Tetracycline (83.33%). In conclusion, the results of the present study revealed the association of M. haemolytica with pneumonic pasteurellosis in sheep and goats and can be of use in vaccine development in Ethiopia. Nevertheless, further investigations and continuous monitoring of antimicrobial resistance and appropriate selection and prudent use of antimicrobials in livestock sector are required.

Bovine brucellosis is considered as an important disease among livestock and people in sub-Saharan African countries including Ethiopia. A cross-sectional study was conducted from November 2016 to May 2017 to estimate the prevalence and associated risk factors, and to assess knowledge-attitude and practices (KAP) of farm workers about bovine brucellosis in Addis Ababa dairy farms. A total of 1550 cattle from 127 dairy farms were serially tested using the Rose Bengal Plate Test (RBPT), Competitive Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbant Assay (c-ELISA) and Complement Fixation Test (CFT). Forty-three (2.77%) of the collected sera were positive by the RBPT and only one of these was positive by c-ELISA (0.06%) and none was positive by CFT. The knowledge of farm workers towards the disease was very low and risk factors associated with Brucella infection were apparent in the study area. Seropositivity for Brucella spp. was found in only a very small percentage by c-ELISA test, although risk factors for transmitting Brucella infection were present. The results suggest that bovine brucellosis is currently not a generalized problem in dairy cattle of Addis Ababa. Since this favorable disease situation is not the result of informed policy, there is no guarantee that it will continue unchanged. Setting clear policy in control of the disease and implementing “One Health” are the most constructive approaches recommended.

As evidence of the infection of domestic animals by Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Anaplasma sp. ‘Omatjenne’ is presently becoming available, understanding the epidemiological and ecological significance of infection is important to quantify the clinical and socio-economic impact of the diseases they cause. The first aim of this study was to analyse the occurrence of A. phagocytophilum and Anaplasma sp. ‘Omatjenne’ in cattle samples collected from selected African countries using a polymerase chain reaction and restriction enzyme fragment length polymorphism. Secondly, this study was aimed at the molecular identification of Ehrlichia spp. and Anaplasma spp. infection in ruminants raised under different production systems in selected sites in central Ethiopia. In total, 695 samples from cattle in six African countries were analysed. Overall, 45 positive results were obtained for Anaplasma sp. ‘Omatjenne’ (6.47%) and 19 for A. phagocytophilum (2.73%). Anaplasma sp. ‘Omatjenne’ was detected in all countries except Tanzania while A. phagocytophilum was detected only in samples from Ethiopia. The proportion of samples tested positive for Anaplasma sp. ‘Omatjenne’ ranged from 1.2% in Morocco to 16% in Rwanda. The occurrence of both agents is now confirmed in African cattle. For the survey in Ethiopia a semi-nested 16S rDNA polymerase chain reaction followed by restriction fragment length polymorphism was used for the identification of Ehrlichia spp. and Anaplasma spp. in blood samples. Randomly selected samples were also analysed by pCS20 polymerase chain reaction for the detection of E. ruminantium. Positive results were obtained for E. ruminantium and five species of Anaplasma including a zoonotic species. To our knowledge, this is the first report of infection of domestic ruminants with A. phagocytophilum, A. ovis and Anaplasma sp. ‘Omatjenne’ in Ethiopia. The present study showed widespread occurrence of Anaplasma sp. 'Omatijenne' in African cattle and five Anaplasma species in Ethiopia.

Newcastle disease (ND) is a highly infectious disease causing considerable economic losses to poultry farmers worldwide. Conventional vaccine delivery methods are not suitable for smallholder and rural poultry producers, and thus appropriate vaccination methods need to be sought. This study was carried out with the main objective of evaluating the efficacy of ND I2 vaccine delivered via drinking water and spray under smallholder farmers’ condition in Minjar-Shenkora district, central Ethiopia. Twenty households were randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. Chickens owned by the selected households were randomly assigned to one of the three intervention groups. Blood samples were collected regularly for antibody assay from individual chicken vaccinated with ND I2 vaccine using different routes. At baseline, there was no difference in antibody titer among the experimental groups. After the first and booster vaccinations, the three vaccinated groups had significantly higher antibody titer (P < 0.001) than the unvaccinated control group. Interestingly, there was no statistically significant difference in antibody titer among the vaccinated groups. Out of the 40 chicken in the unvaccinated control only 14 had antibody titter≥ log23. Similarly 19/37 of chicken in the drinking water group, 19/37 of chicken in the eye drop group and 20/40 chicken in the spray group had antibody titer ≥ log23. Two weeks after the first vaccination the proportion of chicken with antibody titer ≥ log23 rose to 23/37, 30/37 and 29/40 in the group vaccinated via drinking water, eye drop and spray, respectively. The proportion remained low in unvaccinated group. Hundred percent of the vaccinated chicken survived after infection with the virulent ND virus (Alemaya strain); whereas only 40% survived from the unvaccinated control group. The results of this study showed that ND I2 vaccine administered via drinking water and spray under smallholder farmers’ situation provoked protective antibody level similar to the eye drop method. The use of ND I2 vaccine could contribute to food security if used by rural poultry farmers properly.

Purpose: Salmonellosis is a foodborne zoonoses found worldwide. The main purpose of this study was to isolate and identify Salmonella and assess their antimicrobial susceptibility profiles from smallhold broilers supply chains and slaughterhouses in Bishoftu and Modjo, central Ethiopia. Methods: Four smallhold broiler farms under the auspices of Chico Meat were selected randomly. Feed, water, and water- and feed-trough samples were collected from broiler farms, while cecal contents were collected from slaughtered chicken at Chico Meat slaughterhouse. Conventional bacteriological techniques were used to isolate and identify Salmonella from the samples. Kirby–Bauer disk diffusion was employed to assess the antimicrobial susceptibility of the isolates. Results: Salmonella was isolated from 131 (24.3%, 95% CI 20.74– 28.15) of the 539 samples tested. Salmonella was found in 43 of the 250 samples collected from Bishoftu (22%, 95% CI 17.02%– 27.65%) and 76 of the 289 samples collected from Modjo (26.29%, 95% CI 21.32%– 31.77%). Salmonella was isolated from 26.46% of the cloacal samples, 21% of the cecal contents, 30.77% of the feed samples, 25% of the water samples, 22.22% of samples from feed troughs, and 20% of samples from water troughs. The highest level of resistance (80.81%) was observed against tetracycline, followed by kanamycin (71.72%), chloramphenicol and amoxicillin (67.68%), sulfamethazole–trimethoprim (61.62%), naldixic acid (63.64%), and streptomycin (59.60%), whereas most of the isolates were susceptible to gentamicin (69.70%). Resistance to more than two drugs was also observed. Conclusion: Salmonella was found in high prevalence in broilers, their feed, and their environment. Moreover, a majority of the isolates were resistant to most antimicrobials used in medical and poultry practices. This has significant implications for public health and antimicrobial resistance.