There is scant information on Salmonella in indigenous poultry in Nigeria. We investigated the occurrence and characterized Salmonella serovars in indigenous poultry and their drinking water sources to enhance the monitoring of the infection in poultry and to promote public health. We collected 1208 samples, poultry droppings (n = 1108), and water (n = 100) across 15 markets in North Central Nigeria. Salmonella spp. were isolated following World Organisation for Animal Health guidelines. Salmonella spp., confirmed through invA gene detection by a polymerase chain reaction assay, were 6.8% (75/1108) droppings and 3% (3/100) water. Susceptibility testing against 13 antimicrobials showed 60.3% (47/78) susceptibility to all the antimicrobials tested while 14.1% (11/78) were multidrug resistant. Serotyping and whole-genome sequencing were carried out on 44 of the isolates, and 23 different serovars were identified. Genomes of serovars Luedinghausen, Laredo, Widemarsh, and Lansing are being documented in Africa for the first time. Twenty (20) antimicrobial resistance (AMR) gene markers encoding for resistance to aminoglycosides, tetracyclines, sulphonamides, quinolones, trimethoprim, penicillins and phenicols were found. Phylogenetic cluster analysis showed close relatedness among isolates from different sources. This study shows both low Salmonella prevalence and AMR, but since uncommon serovars are circulating, continuous monitoring is recommended so as to ensure food safety and poultry health.

Background: Salmonella infections continue to be of global concern to poultry health, productivity, and public health. About 44% of the poultry in Nigeria are indigenous, and kept in close interaction with farmers who are mostly rural dwellers and have limited access to veterinary and extension services. Aim: The perceptions and practices of farmers of indigenous poultry towards Salmonella infections were assessed in order to obtain and document baseline data that can be used to create awareness among farmers about these infections and their attendant public health implications. Methods: A cross-sectional approach using a multi-stage sampling method was used in this survey. A total of 419 farmers keeping indigenous poultry were interviewed using a pre-tested electronic questionnaire in three randomly selected States within North-Central Nigeria. Data were analyzed using descriptive and regression analysis. Results: Out of the 419 respondents, 138 (32.9%), 141 (33.7%), and 140 (33.4%) were from Benue, Kwara, and Plateau States respectively. Of the 419, 55.4% were females, 40.8% were above 40 years, and 35.8% have over 10 years farming experience. Majority of the poultry are not housed (58.5%) and farmers predominantly rear chickens (51.8%). Also, 49.9% of the birds were 1-6 months with 41.5% of the flock sizes being 11-20. Respondents had a poor level of perception towards Salmonella infection as the majority did not know that Salmonella affects poultry (89.3%) and that Salmonella infections are zoonotic (94.5%). Significant (p =0.000) associations existed between categorized perception score and age, educational status, family size, and farming experience of farmers. There were significant (p = 0.000) associations of categorized practice scores with gender, age, education status, family size, and farming experience of farmers. Conclusion: This study has revealed the poor perception of farmers on Salmonella infections and has highlighted their practices. There is a need to raise awareness about these infections so as to improve indigenous poultry health and productivity as well as public health.

In tropical regions, heat stress reduces broiler chicken productivity, highlighting the need for developing alternative growth promoters to replace antibiotics. The present study aimed to evaluate the effects of dietary phytase (Axtra® Phytase) and the probiotic Bacillus amyloliquefaciens (B. amyloliquefaciens) on the growth performance and feed intake in broiler chickens during the hot-humid season in Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria. A total of 180 broiler chickens, 15 days old, were randomly allocated to four experimental groups. Each group consisted of 45 chickens with three replicates per group and 15 chickens per replicate. The dietary groups included a control group fed the basal diet without additives (Ctrl), a probiotic group supplemented with B. amyloliquefaciens at 1 × 10⁹ CFU/kg (Prob), a phytase group supplemented with Axtra® Phytase enzyme at 200 FTU/kg (Phy), and a combined group that received probiotic and phytase (Phy + Prob). The broiler chickens experienced challenging environmental conditions throughout the study, with average measurements of 29.00 ± 0.40°C for dry-bulb temperature, 68 ± 1.54% for relative humidity, and 27.99 ± 0.50°C for the temperature-humidity index. All these factors were higher than the optimal range for broiler thermal comfort. The live weight, weight gain, feed intake, organ weight, and feed conversion ratio were assessed. On day 42, live and organ weights in the treated groups were significantly higher than those in Ctrl. All supplemented groups indicated increased weight gain. Feed intake was higher in the Ctrl and Prob groups compared to the Phy and Phy + Prob groups. These findings indicated that supplementation with phytase, alone or in combination with B. amyloliquefaciens, improved growth performance, feed efficiency, and organ development while modulating feed intake during heat stress. The present results demonstrated that B. amyloliquefaciens, phytase, or their combination enhanced growth performance, organ weights, feed efficiency, and overall productivity in broiler chickens subjected to heat stress during the hot-humid season in Nigeria. The current results supported the use of phytase and B. amyloliquefaciens in tropical poultry production.