DefinePK

Abstract

ABSTRACT Neonatal diarrhea is one of the leading cause of mortalities in goats leading to economic losses. The current research was conducted to study the prevalence of Salmonella and Escherichia coli in diarrheic goat kids. Fecal samples of 200 diarrheic goats up to two months of age were collected from different government and private sector veterinary hospitals, livestock farms and small households in and around district Bahawalpur between year 2021 and 2022 on seasonal basis. Microbiological samples underwent processing to isolate E. coli and Salmonella, and the identification of these isolates was achieved through a combination of cultural, morphological, and biochemical characteristics, complemented by molecular characterization. PCR results showed amplification of 521 bp segment of the invA gene and 314bp of K99 gene in Salmonella and E. coli, respectively. The results revealed that bacterial prevalence was 43.5%, among which E. coli prevalence was 23.5% and Salmonella prevalence was 17.5%. Moreover, in male goat kids, both Salmonella and E. coli infection rate was higher (65.71% and 31.25% respectively) as compared to females (7.27% and 13.64% respectively). Concerning the local breeds, Desi breed has the highest prevalence of Salmonella (21.21%) and E. coli (29.41%). Seasonal variations were found to be statistically significant in Salmonella with high prevalence in winter (41.18%) but non- significant in E. coli with high prevalence in Autumn (29.41%). Furthermore, varying factors impact infection rates such as, age, weather conditions, management practices and hygiene measures.