Preliminary Findings on the Carrier Status of Pasteurella multocida in Farmed and Traded Healthy-appearing Scavenging Indigenous Chickens and Ducks in Kenya

One hundred and twenty three indigenous chickens and 24 ducks reared under free range scavenging system were examined for the carrier status of Pasteurella multocida. Both the oropharynyngeal and cloacal swab samples were examined for the presence of the organisms by means of mouse passage and inoculation into blood agar. Of these, 53 chickens and 24 ducks were from different smallholder farms in Nairobi, and Machakos districts, 41 chickens were from various slaughterhouses in Nairobi, while 29 were market chickens obtained from various market centers in Nairobi. The traded (market and slaughter) chickens all originated from rural districts in various parts of the country. From the 123 chickens examined, Pasteurella multocida subspecies were isolated only from four birds. The isolates were recovered from the traded chickens only. Pasteurella organisms were not from any of the 24 ducks. On the basis of biochemical characterization, the organisms were differentiated as P. multocida multocida (1/4), P. multocida septica (1/4) and P. multocida gallicida (2/4). This study suggests that healthy traded poultry could be carriers of Pasteurella multocida. It describes the first report of Pasteurella multocida isolation from indigenous birds in Kenya. Kenya Veterinarian Vol. 31 (1) 2007: pp. 1-5