A Serological Survey for Newcastle Disease Virus Antibobies in Village Poultry in Yobe State, Nigeria

A serological survey to detect the presence of antibodies to Newcastle disease virus (NDV) in village poultry was conducted in 17 villages of Yobe State, Nigeria. The aim of the study was to investigate the prevalence of NDV using haemaggluttination inhibition test.  Ten households were sampled from each village. Five chickens were randomly selected from each household in the night for convenience of handling (6-9 pm GMT+1) and bled from their wing vein. Serum was extracted from clotted blood and screened for antibodies to Newcastle disease virus. The results showed an evidence for NDV antibodies. The prevalence of antibodies to Newcastle disease virus was 34.5% in chickens. The prevalence was 4.0% in ducks, 3.5% in guinea fowls, 23.0% in turkeys and 0.0% in pigeons. The detection of detection of NDV antibodies in village chickens and other birds reared together in Yobe State, Nigeria could serve as a base line data for future studies. Key words : Nigeria, prevalence, village poultry, viral diseases