Abstract

Aim: Purpose of the study was to determine the incidence of foot rot concerning breeds, sex, and ages, isolates and characterises the bacterial organisms, and establishes their sensitivity pattern to commonly used antimicrobial agents in Nigerian breeds of sheep in Oyo State, Nigeria.

Method and materials:  Total 66-foot rot swab samples from sheep with clinical symptoms of foot rot infection were screened for the bacterial organisms between January and June 2023. Standard microbiological methods were adopted for microbiological analyses and antimicrobial susceptibility tests.

Results: Findings revealed that 36 out of 66 screened sheep were positive for either one or both commonest bacterial aetiological organisms (Dichelobacter nodosus and Fusobacterium necrophorum). Overall positivity of foot rot etiological organisms of 54.55% was observed. The study revealed that the Yankasa breed was the most susceptible breed, with 63.64%, while the Balami breed of sheep was the least susceptible, with 09.09%. The severity of foot rot showed that sheep having severe infection had the highest positivity (61.10%), while sheep with mild infection had the lowest percentage positivity (25%). The two isolated bacteria (Dichelobacter nodosus and Fusobacterium necrophorum) were highly resistant to oxytetracycline and tylosin and moderately resistant to sulphadimidine and amoxicillin. But they showed high sensitivity to clindamycin and moderate sensitivity to ofloxacin and enrofloxacin.

Conclusion: It was concluded that foot rot was more common in Yankasa, Ewe, and adult sheep than in other breeds, rams, and young animals. The most common organisms in foot rot were Dichelobacter nodosus and Fusobacterium necrophorum, which were highly sensitive to clindamycin.

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