Sero-prevalence of brucellosis in goats in Kululu Subcounty In Yumbe District

Abstract

Brucellosis is endemic in ruminants with devastating economic and public health impacts ranging from retarded calving and decreased calving rate, culling due to infertility, decreased milk yield, abortions and still births. However, no reports have been documented on brucellosis in goats across different parts of Yumbe district. The purpose of this study was to estimate prevalence and knowledge of brucellosis among goat farmers as well as risk factors associated with Brucella positivity in goats in Kululu Sub County in Yumbe District. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 109 goat farms. One serum sample was randomly picked from a single goat in each farm. All the samples were properly packed and sent to the microbiology laboratory of College of veterinary medicine, animal resources and biosecurity for analysis. A Structured questionnaire was used to capture data on knowledge and awareness of Brucellosis, as well as to the risk factors in the study area. The collected data was analyzed using SPSS and results presented using descriptive statistics. Out of the 109 samples, 4 samples were confirmed as positive. Translating into an overall brucellosis prevalence of 3.7%. It was also revealed that majority 96 (88.1%) of the respondents did not know about Brucellosis, only 13 (11.9%) knew about the disease. Majority of the risk factors for brucellosis assessed were non-significant. Only having a fence was significantly associated with brucellosis infection. Although the prevalence of brucellosis is still low in Yumbe district, the low level of knowledge about brucellosis poses a significant health risk to both the animal and human population. Therefore, there is need for increased awareness through multiple communication channels to convey and expand public knowledge about brucellosis.