Ifeoma Chinyere Ugwu, Patrick Chukwudi Nwankwo, Chidozie Clifford Ugwu, Emmanuel Chukwudi Okwor, Didacus Chukwuemeka Eze, and Didacus Chukwuemeka Eze

DOI: 10.14456/sjst-psu.2022.36

pp. 250 - 255

Abstract

Staphylococcus species are the main cause of small ruminant’s intramammary infections. This study was carried out to determine the prevalence of subclinical mastitis associated with Staphylococcus in goat milk and their resistance to antibiotics in Nsukka Agricultural area of Enugu State, Nigeria. Eighty-four milk samples were collected from goats randomly. White slide mastitis test was performed on the milk. Catalase production, coagulase production and haemolytic testing was done on the staphylococci isolates. Antibiotic susceptibility test was carried out using disc diffusion method. Eleven antibiotics were used. Eighty-four (100%) isolates were recovered. They were catalase positive and non-haemolytic. Forty-five (53.6%) were coagulase positive while 39 (46.4%) were coagulase negative. The isolates showed high resistance to ampicillin, cefoxitin, oxacillin, vancomycin, ciprofloxacin, kanamycin, tetracycline, and erythromycin. This study shows that there is high prevalence of Staphylococcus species in goat milk in Nsukka Agricultural zone of Enugu State. The high resistance to antibiotics shown by the isolates could make it difficult to treat mastitis in that area.