Study of Salmonella infection and antibiotic susceptibility pattern of the isolates from laying quail flocks in Tehran Province

Due to the rapid growth of the quail industry in the country and the importance of Salmonella infection, further monitoring of quail flocks in terms of infection with this bacterium seems necessary. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the presence of Salmonella infection and evaluate the antibiotic resistance of the isolates in 10 laying quail flocks and their eggs in Tehran province. Sampling was done from 10 laying quail flocks. 36 samples of cloaca swaps were randomly taken from each flock, then each six samples were pooled in one test tube. Also, 25 eggs were collected from each flock to check contamination of the shell and the contents. Then all the samples were sent to the laboratory for culture, confirmation of diagnosis and antibiotic susceptibility testing of the isolates. Salmonella infection was confirmed in 3 out of the 10 quail flocks. 5% of cloaca swap samples, 4% of quail eggshell samples and 4% of quail egg content samples were positive for Salmonella infection. Also, all isolates were completely sensitive to the antibiotics Fosfomycin and Lincospectin and the highest resistance was observed in Colistin. Considering the high contamination of laying quail flocks with salmonella and its importance in terms of public health, further monitoring of quail flocks contamination with this bacterium and proper implementation of biosecurity measures and improvement of management methods seem necessary.