This study investigated faecal carriage and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) of Salmonella enterica recovered from rangeland goats. Faecal samples (n = 400) were collected at slaughter from four consignments of goats (n = 100 samples per consignment), each from one of four localities in Western Australia. Carriage of Salmonella spp. was detected in 106 samples (26.5%; 95% CI 22.4–31.0%). The rate of faecal carriage for each consignment ranged between 23–30%. PCR assays targeting the STM2755 and STM4497 genes revealed 84.9% (90/106) of the isolates were of serovar Typhimurium. Salmonella Chester (11/106, 10.4%) and S. Saintpaul (5/106, 4.7%) were characterised at invA and ompF genes. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing demonstrated that 84.0% of isolates were susceptible to all tested (n = 13) antimicrobials. Resistance was identified to azithromycin (14.2%), tetracycline (10.4%), ampicillin (5.7%), amoxicillin–clavulanate and cefoxitin (3.8%), trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (1.9%), gentamicin and streptomycin (0.9%). No isolate was resistant to four or more antimicrobials, or to critically important antimicrobials such as fluoroquinolones and extended spectrum cephalosporins. This is the first study reporting AMR in Salmonella isolates from Australian rangeland goats. The rate of detection of AMR was very low, some resistance to low-importance drugs was present in the Salmonella population, despite the absence of active selection pressure.

Background and Aim: The reports from the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries suggest that camels suffer less compared to goats, sheep, and cows from a number of common infectious diseases in Oman. However, there is no immunological evidence to substantiate this claim. This present study is, therefore, an attempt to study the immunological responses of camels, goats, sheep, and cows by comparing their oxidative respiratory burst of peripheral blood leukocytes (PBLs) as a marker of innate immunity occurring during phagocytosis and the mitogenic responses of their peripheral blood mononuclear leukocytes (PBMLs) as a marker of their adaptive immune response. Materials and Methods: Ten female adult animals (n = 10) were selected from each species (goats, sheep, and cows). The goats, sheep, and cows were maintained at the Agricultural Experiment Station, while camels were kept at the Royal Camel Corps (RCC). Blood samples were collected from the jugular vein in 7 mL of heparin and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid vacutainer tubes. The oxidative respiratory burst of PBLs was measured using a chemiluminescence (CL) assay. Reactants consisted of 75 μL of whole blood diluted (1:50), 75 μL of luminol/isoluminol, and 75 μL of zymosan opsonized with non-heat inactivated serum/heat-inactivated serum or non-opsonized zymosan. CL responses were measured as relative light units and expressed as the mean count per minute and peak CL values. The mitogenic response of PBMLs to concanavalin A (Con-A), phytohemagglutinin (PHA), and pokeweed mitogen (PWM) was tested using a WST-8 assay and read spectrophotometrically at 450 nm. Results: The present findings showed that camel PBLs generate significantly higher CL responses, both intracellularly as well as extracellularly, with zymosan opsonized with autologous serum. Camel PBLs demonstrated a significantly higher (p = 0.001) response when stimulated with zymosan opsonized with heat-inactivated serum compared to those of goat, sheep, and cow lymphocytes from camels exhibited significantly higher (p = 0.001) stimulation indices (SI) with Con-A, PHA, and PWM. Conclusion: The present study suggests that camels are capable of mounting both superior innate as well as adaptive immune responses and provide immunological evidence supporting the belief of some authors, who have proposed that camels are less susceptible to a number of common infectious diseases than other domesticated ruminants.

Background and Aim: Epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus (EHDV), an Orbivirus transmitted by Culicoides midges, infects a wide range of ruminant species including dromedary camels (Camelus dromedarius). Although circulation of EHDV has been documented in cattle in the Sultanate of Oman, its epidemiology in camels remains poorly characterized. This study was conducted in the Al Batinah North and Al Batinah South governorates, coastal regions with hot, arid climates favorable to vector activity, to estimate individual-level seroprevalence of EHDV antibodies in dromedary camels, identify associated risk factors using univariate and multivariate analyses, and evaluate spatial distribution patterns to inform future control measures in multi-host livestock systems. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed between September 2020 and July 2021. Serum samples were collected from 415 camels across 50 holdings using convenience sampling. Antibodies against EHDV were detected with a commercial competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (c-ELISA) targeting the VP7 protein (sensitivity = 85.9 %, specificity = 99.7 %). True prevalence (TP) was calculated using the Rogan–Gladen estimator. Univariate associations were assessed with chi-square or Fisher’s exact tests; variables with p < 0.25 were entered into backward stepwise binary logistic regression. Spatial analyses included average nearest-neighbour clustering, Getis-Ord Gi* hot-spot analysis, and kernel density estimation in ArcGIS. Results: Apparent seroprevalence was 40.2 % (95 % confidence interval [CI]: 35.5–45.1 %), with an estimated TP of 46.7 % (95 % CI: 41.3–52.3 %). No significant difference existed between governorates (p = 0.520). In univariate analysis, seropositivity was significantly higher in camels > 4 years of age (45.9 % vs 19.3 %; p < 0.001), in breeding/leisure camels (43.1 % vs 20.8 %; p = 0.002), and in animals kept in contact with other ruminants (49.3 % vs 35.6 %; p = 0.007). After multivariate adjustment, only age > 4 years (odds ratio [OR] = 3.4, 95 % CI: 1.88–5.96; p < 0.01) and contact with other ruminants (OR = 1.6, 95 % CI: 1.05–2.44; p = 0.029) remained independent risk factors. Global spatial clustering of positive holdings was highly significant (nearest-neighbour ratio = 0.39, z = –8.26, p < 0.001), with elevated density along coastal agricultural corridors. Conclusion: This first large-scale serological survey confirms active circulation of EHDV among dromedary camels in northern Oman. Older age and mixed-species herding are the main risk factors identified. The findings highlight the importance of camels in the multi-host ecology of EHDV and emphasize the need for integrated national surveillance, vector studies, and molecular characterization of circulating serotypes to support evidence-based control strategies in a changing climate. Keywords: dromedary camels, EHDV antibodies, epizootic hemorrhagic disease, northern Oman, risk factors EHDV, seroprevalence study, spatial clustering EHDV.

An observational study was conducted to investigate Eimeria species prevalence, fecal shedding, morphometric, and molecular composition in captive Arabian oryx ( Oryx leucoryx ) bred at the Mammals Breeding Center in Oman. Oryx were sampled in the summer and winter seasons. Eimeria was detected at a prevalence of 26% in summer and 22% in winter, with higher shedding intensity observed during the summer among adult oryx. The isolated Eimeria displayed ellipsoidal oocysts and ovoidal sporocysts with average dimensions of 30.6 × 24.3 μm (ranging from 24.8 to 35.4 × 20.9–26.7) and 14.3 × 7.1 μm (ranging from 11.1 to 18.3 × 6.1–8.6), respectively. Molecularly (18S rRNA, ITS‐1), E. saudiensis revealed its unique identity and closest relation (96.7%–99.3%) to E. bovis isolates of bovine origin (MK691697 and AB769578), respectively, in the absence of antelope‐derived isolates. The findings serve as a precursor to incorporating Eimeria species derived from Arabian oryx into the molecular map.