An outbreak of Salmonella enterica serotype Choleraesuis in goitered gazelle (Gazella subgutrosa subgutrosa) and a Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus).

An outbreak of Salmonella enterica serotype Choleraesuis enteritis occurred in two juvenile goitered gazelles and an adult Malayan tapir over a period of 5 wk at the Minnesota Zoo. Diagnosis was made postmortem on one gazelle and one tapir, and a second gazelle was diagnosed via fecal culture. The death of the tapir was attributed to S. enterica serovar Choleraesuis septicemia, while salmonellosis was considered to be a contributing factor besides ostertagiasis for the death of one goitered gazelle and for the diarrhea of another goitered gazelle. A third gazelle became ill in the same time period, but Salmonella infection was not confirmed by culture. All exhibited the clinical signs of profuse, watery diarrhea. The gazelles developed a protein-losing enteropathy, and the tapir showed signs of sepsis and endotoxemia. Serotyping and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis revealed the Salmonella isolates to be indistinguishable from each other. One year prior to this outbreak, Salmonella sp. was cultured from a Visayan warty pig (Sus cebifrons) housed in the same building as the tapir. After further investigation into the outbreak, spread of this pathogen was speculated to be associated with human movement across animal areas.

Epidemiologic features of Campylobacter infection among cats in the upper midwestern United States.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the epidemiologic features of Campylobacter infection among cats in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metropolitan area. DESIGN: Prevalence survey. ANIMALS: 152 cats examined at 3 private veterinary clinics and an animal humane society. PROCEDURES: Fecal samples were submitted for bacterial culture for Campylobacter spp. To determine the duration of Campylobacter carriage, follow-up fecal samples were collected from cats with positive Campylobacter culture results. RESULTS: Campylobacter organisms were cultured from 37 of the 152 (24%) fecal samples. Campylobacter isolates were identified as Campylobacter upsaliensis (29 cats), Campylobacter jejuni (2), and Campylobacter coli (1); species of the remaining 5 isolates could not be determined. Campylobacter organisms were isolated from 36 of the 122 (30%) cats that were < or = 1 year old but from only 1 of the 30 (3%) cats that were > 1 year old, and shedding was more common during the summer and fall months. No association between Campylobacter shedding and clinical signs of disease was identified. For 4 of 13 cats from which follow-up fecal samples were obtained, duration of Campylobacter carriage could not be determined because Campylobacter organisms were isolated from all follow-up samples. For the remaining 9 cats, median duration of Campylobacter carriage was 44 days. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: C. upsaliensis can commonly be isolated from the feces of overtly healthy kittens in the Midwest United States. Because carriage may be prolonged, veterinarians should encourage good hand hygiene among owners of cats, especially among owners with new kittens in their household.