Abstract:
The present study was undertaken to determine the occurrence, distribution and antimicrobial
resistance pattern of Salmonella serovars in apparently healthy slaughtered sheep and goats in central
Ethiopia. A total 1224 samples consisting of faeces,
mesenteric lymph nodes, liver, spleen, and abdominal and diaphragmatic muscle samples were collected
from 104 sheep and 100 goats. Salmonella was isolated from 12 of 104 (11.5%) sheep and 3 of 100
(3%) goats. Of the total 624 and 600 samples examined
from sheep and goats, 18 (2.9%) and 4 (0.7%), respectively, were Salmonella positive. The 22 Salmonella
Description:
Previous reports have indicated that sheep and goats
harbour a wide range of Salmonella serovars and act
as one of the sources of infection of human salmonellosis (Nabbut and Al-Nakhli, 1982; Abdel-Ghani et al.,
1987). Contamination of red meat by Salmonella may
occur at abattoirs from carrier animals excreting the
organism and by contaminated abattoir equipment
and floors (Smeltzer et al., 1980). It is obvious that
salmonellae in the mesenteric lymph nodes, which
could be incised during the inspection process, and in
faeces, constitute sources for contamination of red meat
and other edible parts of the carcasses (Smeltzer et al.,
1980; Nabbut and Al-Nakhli, 1982)
