Antibiotic resistance (AMR) is currently one of the most worrying trends globally, as it prevents effective treatment of diseases, some of which may be life‐threatening. Pet animals are assumed to be potential reservoirs for transferring AMR to humans due to the wide use of antibiotics on pets and their close contact with humans. This study confirmed the carriage of E. coli‐resistant bacteria by dogs in the Kasarani area, Nairobi, Kenya. Fecal samples were collected from 18 (11 stray dogs and 7 home‐kept) dogs. The samples (14) yielded E. coli, which were further tested for susceptibility to selected antibiotics, by the agar disc diffusion method; 13 of them demonstrated resistance at various rates: highest resistance was to ampicillin (AMP) at 85.7%, followed by sulfamethoxazole (SX) at 64.3%, cotrimoxazole (COT) and tetracycline (TE) at 57.1%, streptomycin (S) at 50%, kanamycin at 21.4%, and chloramphenicol at 7.1% (1 isolate); while all isolates were susceptible to gentamycin, 3 isolates were resistant to AMP only, one of which was resistant to 6 antibiotics, while one was susceptible to all 8 antibiotics tested. Some isolates demonstrated multiple resistance; one showed resistance to 6 antibiotics tested. Antibiotics with high inclusion in the multiresistant strains were AMP and TE at 72.7% (8/11) each. The next common inclusion was SX at 63.6% (7/11), followed by COT and S at 54.5% (6/11) each. The bacteria resistant to chloramphenicol were further resistant to four other antibiotics: AMP, COT, S, and SX. Results of this study could help guide the empirical use of antibiotics in small animal practice and further provide added information on the status of AMR bacteria in Kasarani.

In Ethiopia, the reproductive efficiency of dairy cattle utilizing artificial insemination (AI) is low, and implementing estrus and ovulation synchronization protocols could enhance the efficiency. Therefore, this study was designed to evaluate the effect of progesterone (P4) supplementation during Co‐Synch on estrus response (ER) and pregnancy per AI (P/AI) in crossbred dairy cattle breed in Southwestern Ethiopia. In the trial, heifers and cows (n = 120) were enrolled in the study. All animals received 100 μg of gonadotropin‐releasing hormone (GnRH) and had a progesterone‐releasing intravaginal device (PRID) inserted intravaginally on Day 0. On Day 7, they received 25 mg of prostaglandin (PGF2α), followed by the removal of the PRID. On Day 9, animals received 100 μg of GnRH concurrent with insemination. Estrus signs were monitored to assess heat response during morning and evening for at least 30 min at approximately 12‐h intervals from PRID removal on Days 7 through 9. Trans‐rectal ultrasonography was used to diagnose pregnancy 60 days after AI. The P/AI was recorded as the total number of pregnant females from the total number of animals involved in the synchronization program. A logistic regression analysis was performed to test the effectiveness of the treatment on ER and PR. 80% of animals showed ER to the treatment. A greater percentage of primiparous cows (93.33%) responded to the treatment, followed by heifers (83.33%), while the lowest response was seen in cows with a parity of 3 (66.67%). A total of 59.17% of the overall P/AI was achieved. The P/AI was affected by parity; a higher P/AI was obtained from the primiparous group. Statistically, no bull or BCS effect on P/AI was observed in the current study. Supplementation of P4 improved pregnancy outcomes, surpassing the national average, suggesting the protocol’s success in synchronizing estrus and ovulation among crossbred cows and heifers.

Background In Ethiopia, veterinary pharmaceuticals and agricultural pesticides are vital to maintaining agricultural productivity and food security, yet their quality and safety regulation face significant challenges. Objectives This study aimed to assess the regulatory framework, institutional capacity, and routine quality assurance practices related to veterinary drugs and agricultural pesticides in Ethiopia. Problems in routine practices and common product defects were assessed. Methods Retrospective analysis of regulatory practice records (2017–2022), cross‐sectional stakeholder surveys, and focal regulatory expert discussions were employed to collect data. Data sources included were institutional postmarket surveillance and foreign good manufacturing practice (GMP) visit records, routine pesticide registration, and market authorization practices. Descriptive statistics are used to summarize findings on data collection and analysis. Results The GMP inspection records ( N = 79) revealed the experience of 20 major and 8 critical deficiencies, with 4.2% and 8.5% of observed deficiencies leading to company and production line rejections from market entry. Postmarket surveillance records reveal that 8.2% of veterinary drug samples fail to comply with required standards. Additionally, the observation for regulatory processes and practices showed inconsistencies in the use of reference standards and the absence of specific guidelines for regulatory decisions. Furthermore, the study revealed that the pesticide regulatory system lacked codified procedures and quality control infrastructure. Conclusion The study found that the country’s veterinary pharmaceutical and pesticide regulatory system exhibits critical weaknesses in GMP compliance, postmarket surveillance, and institutional coherences, contributing to the circulation of substandard products and environmental health risks. The study suggests that urgent reforms are required, including harmonized quality standards, investment in laboratory infrastructure, digital regulatory tools, strengthened interagency coordination, and stabilization of institutional mandates to align with international benchmarks and protect public health.

Serum sialic acid (SSA) levels, including total sialic acid (TSA), lipid-bound sialic acid (LBSA), and protein-bound sialic acid (PBSA), have been extensively studied as biomarkers of inflammation and infection across various species and diseases. In parasitemic sheep, elevated SSA levels likely reflect host-pathogen interactions and immune activation. Contrasting findings in bovine theileriosis demonstrated increased sialic acid (SA) levels during acute infections but decreased levels in severe parasitemia, suggesting variable responses based on parasitemia rates. SSA and LBSA levels in dogs significantly increase in babesiosis and dirofilariasis, indicating tissue damage and oxidative stress. Babesiosis, a tick-borne infection, shows SA elevations associated with inflammation and red blood cell destruction. Dirofilariasis, a heartworm disease, shows elevated SSA and LBSA levels, highlighting the importance of acute-phase proteins in disease severity. In avian species, diseases like Newcastle disease virus (NDV) infection, infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) infection, and bacterial challenges caused significant increases in SSA, LBSA, and PBSA levels, with LBSA showing the most pronounced changes, indicating its high sensitivity to inflammatory processes. Japanese quail with omphalitis also demonstrated elevated LBSA, highlighting its diagnostic potential in avian inflammation. Cattle with conditions such as traumatic reticuloperitonitis, acute metritis, pneumonia, and babesiosis exhibited markedly elevated SA and APP levels, consistent with findings in mastitis, colisepticemia, and leptospirosis, where APP levels correlated with disease severity. Tissue damage associated with increased SA is closely linked to inflammation and infection. These changes may also influence receptor-ligand interactions during infection, supporting SA as a useful biomarker for disease monitoring.

Fascioliasis is a parasitic liver disease of mammals induced by liver flukes, Fasciola hepatica and Fasciola gigantica. Fasciola spp. rely on their definitive hosts, ruminants, and intermediate hosts, snails, to survive and can incidentally infect humans as definitive hosts. Ruminant (goat, sheep, and cattle) liver and fecal samples were collected from the Kharaa River Basin (KRB) of Mongolia during 2018-2020. A total of 807 adult liver flukes were found in livers of 18 goats, 21 sheep, and 1 cattle, with morphological identification of F. hepatica species. A total of 350 fecal samples selected using a "risk-based surveillance" method in the KRB were tested for Fasciola spp. eggs with 50.3% (n = 151/350) positive. By animal, cattle had the highest percentage of Fasciola spp. positive samples of 70% (14/20), followed by sheep with 49.4% (87/176) and goats with 32.5% (50/154). Six-hundred Lymnaied spp. snails, an intermediate host of Fasciola, were obtained from 18 locations in six provinces and one provincial municipality and morphometrically identified as Radix bactriana (94.8%) and Lymnaea stagnalis (5.2%). This study represents the first report of fascioliasis in indigenous animals in Mongolia and when paired with the detected prevalence of Fasciola spp. eggs in feces, suggests endemic circulation in the KRB region.

The present study investigated the molecular detection and genetic characteristics of equine herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1) and EHV-4 circulating within Egyptian horse populations during 2019–2022. A total of 79 animals were sampled (54 nasal swabs and 25 aborted fetal tissues). PCR assays revealed that 24 (30.3%) and 7 (8.8%) samples were positive for EHV-1 and EHV-4, respectively. Additionally, 5 (6.3%) samples were concurrently infected with both viruses. Four EHV-1 and three EHV-4 isolates were genetically characterized based on partial sequencing of gB gene. The four EHV-1 strains displayed 100% nucleotide identity to one another and to EHV-1 reference strains reported in Egypt and other countries. The three EHV-4 strains were phylogenetically classified into two distinct clusters based on their nucleotide sequences (76%–100% identity). Meanwhile, their deduced amino acid sequences differed by only one amino acid substitution. Our results underscore the critical importance of EHV-1 and EHV-4 as primary contributors of abortion and respiratory illness in horses and highlight the need for further large-scale surveillance and in-depth characterization studies to improve our understanding of these viruses' epidemiology in Egypt and to develop a robust control strategy.

Background: Turtles are one of the oldest reptiles and have evolved about 200 million years ago. One of them is the red-eared slider (Trachemys scripta). These freshwater turtles are native to the southern United States and northern Mexico. However, they have become popular pets in Iran and many countries around the world. Due to being non-native, they are considered one of the main dangers for the destruction of turtles' species in Iran and other countries. Therefore, knowing the location of coelomic cavity organs can be of great help in performing surgeries such as neutering in this species of turtle to prevent over reproduction and to preserve other species from the possibility of extinction and destruction.Objective: Due to the fact that a precise descriptive study of the anatomy of the coelomic structures in the red-eared slider has not been conducted so far, and considering the necessity of having accurate information about coelomic anatomy for performing various surgeries using laparoscopic techniques, this study was carried out to determine the laparoscopic anatomy of the coelomic organs in red-eared sliders.Methods: The turtles were off feed for 24 h before surgery. Anesthesia was induced with ketamine and diazepam and continued using the inhaler method. After scrubbing the prefemoral region and restraining, the center of the prefemoral fossa was sheared. The laparoscopy rigid lens was transmitted through this cut into the coelomic cavity without insufflation. After the completion of exploratory surgery, the cutting was closed.Results: The study of coelomic cavity organs was performed on each of 5 turtles using laparoscopic technique with only one cut in the specified regions. The location and position of the organs were well determined to be used in future studies.Conclusions: The use of laparoscopic technique is a practical and reliable way to examine the organs of the coelomic cavity. Although this method requires factors such as the ability of the surgeon to use the device, it is a noninvasive technique that helps the surgeon in accessing the organs away from the cutting site.

Feline leukemia virus (FeLV) is an oncogenic immunosuppressive virus belonging to the Retroviridae family and one of the most common causes of a major infectious disorder in cats that can lead to potentially fatal associated diseases with a worse prognosis. FeLV infects and replicates in hematopoietic and lymphatic cells causing anemia, lymphoma, and leukemia. Diagnosis is usually performed by clinicians using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) or lateral flow tests that detect the p27 FeLV antigen. The aim of this work was the development of the FeLVCHECK Ag ELISA, a new rapid direct sandwich ELISA assay that detects the p27 antigen of FeLV. Assay cut-off was estimated by multiple approaches, including the Youden index and the ROC curve, to obtain the optimal test performance. The new test was validated by using 112 feline sera (42 positives and 70 negatives for FeLV) against the ViraCHEK/FeLV ELISA (Zoetis) as a reference, which agreed at 97.3%, with 97.6% sensitivity (95% confidence interval (CI): 86.0%-99.9%) and 97.1% specificity (95% CI: 89.1%-99.5%). Compared with another rapid and direct ELISA, the INgezim FeLV DAS (Gold Standard Diagnostics), the agreement was 90.2%. The new ELISA is both accurate and precise, with intra and inter-assay coefficients of variation (CV) below 10%. Accelerated and real-time stability studies set the shelf life of the kit at 18 months. This study clearly suggests that the FeLVCHECK Ag ELISA can be a valuable tool in clinical practice, as it provides very rapid and reliable results without the need for sample preparation or particular laboratory equipment since all incubations are performed at room temperature.

Feline blood-borne pathogens are important infectious agents of cats that can cause subclinical to severe disease. Awareness of the risks associated with transfusing contaminated blood can reduce morbidity in recipients. Understanding the prevalence and risk factors of these infections is crucial for identifying pathogens that should be screened in feline blood donors. A total of 410 blood samples from client-owned cats were collected between 2018 and 2021 across veterinary hospitals in the Bangkok Metropolitan Area. Conventional PCR was used to detect hemotropic mycoplasmas, Bartonella spp., Anaplasmataceae, and piroplasms. Overall, 20.5% of samples were tested positive for at least one pathogen. Hemotropic mycoplasmas were the most detected agents (16.3%), with “Candidatus Mycoplasma haemominutum” being predominant, followed by Mycoplasma haemofelis. DNA of Bartonella spp. was identified in 5.4% of samples, specifically Bartonella henselae and Bartonella clarridgeiae. No samples tested positive for Anaplasmataceae or piroplasms. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses revealed that male sex, Domestic Shorthair breed, anemia, clinical illness, and increasing age were significant risk factors for hemotropic mycoplasma infection, but kittens were less likely to be infected. Additionally, infection with feline immunodeficiency virus was associated with a higher likelihood of hemotropic mycoplasma positivity in samples collected during 2020-2021. No significant risk factors were identified for Bartonella spp. infection. In conclusion, the findings underscore the necessity of screening feline blood donors for hemotropic mycoplasma and Bartonella spp. Clinically healthy, female, purebred cats without outdoor access cats are recommended as preferred blood donor candidates, given their lower risk of hemotropic mycoplasma infection.

Despite the significant global economic damage caused by African swine fever (ASF) and ongoing developments in the field of specific prevention tools development, safe and effective vaccines are still missing. A critical factor hindering the development of ASF vaccines is the lack of sufficient data on the pathogenesis of the virus, as well as a deep understanding of the virus' evasion strategies from the innate immune system. Of particular interest in the design of candidate vaccines are viral vectors, especially-adeno-associated virus (AAV), which is widely used in gene therapy and is capable of long-term transgene expression in vivo. This study assessed the safety and immunogenicity of recombinant AAV serotype 2 (rAAV2), into the genome of which the ASF virus B646L (p72), E183L (p54), CP530R (pp60), and CP204L (p30) immunodominant genes are integrated. The study design included immunization of pigs with monocistronic and bicistronic constructs based on rAAV2 in different regimens, assessment of the safety and tolerability of a laboratory sample of the vaccine, the biochemical and hematological status of the animals, as well as indicators of humoral and cellular immunity. It was found that rAAV2s in immunizing doses no more than 10 × 1011 viral particles have satisfactory tolerability, promote the formation of virus-specific antibodies that remain at a high level at least until the 180 days of the experiment. It has been proven that the use of bicistronic constructs makes it possible to achieve a similar immune response as when introducing a cocktail of monocistronic constructs, which allows to reduce the vector load on the animal's body. Thus, rAAV2 is a promising platform for the construction of a candidate vaccine against ASF, as it is biologically safe and activates the humoral and cellular immune response, which is extremely important for the formation of a protective immunity.