Retrospective studies on pullorum disease in chickens in Zaria, Nigeria

A twelve-year study (January, 1995 - December, 2006) of case reports on Pullorum disease (PD) and other poultry diseases diagnosed at the Ahmadu Bello University Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Zaria, was conducted. A total of 3, 265 outbreaks were documented with 173 (5.3%) of the outbreaks diagnosed as PD. The annual increase in the number of PD outbreaks implied a decline in the hygienic standards of hatcheries where the first cycle of transmission should be broken. It was observed that chickens raised between June and August, layers and broilers, chicks under 4 weeks of age, and chickens raised under intensive system of management were at greatest risk of suffering from PD outbreaks. It is imperative that regular blood testing of parent stocks for S. Pullorum infections be conducted routinely to eliminate carriers. There is also the need for poultry farmers to institute and intensify biosecurity measures on their farms to minimize horizontal transmission of PD.