Attitude of poultry farmers towards vaccination against newcastle disease and avian influenza in Ibadan, Nigeria

Newcastle disease (ND) and Avian Influenza (AI) are among the important viral diseases of poultry with very high economic implications. ND is enzootic in most parts of the world while Highly Pathogenic AI (HPAI) is an emerging zoonosis in Nigeria. This study was carried out to assess the perception and attitude of poultry farmers in the selected Local Government Areas in Ibadan towards vaccination of birds against these diseases, and to find out the types of vaccines that were available for the control of the two diseases. A total of 84 respondents out of 100 (84%) completed and returned the questionnaires administered. The results indicated that all farmers vaccinated their birds against ND. The regime for ND vaccination was not the same across the local government areas. Some 32 (38.1%) farmers operated vaccination schedules provided by hatchery technicians, while 43 (51.2%) farmers vaccinated their birds at about 4-6 weeks interval. Nine (10.7%) farmers combined hatchery and laboratory evaluation to determine schedule. Thirty nine farmers (46.4%) indicated that they were aware of national policy of non-vaccination against AI. However, 14 out of 84 farmers (16.7%) vaccinated their birds against HPAI. There is a need to continue the national policy of slaughter of HPAI infected poultry birds and compensation of farmers, albeit allowing strategic use of vaccine to effectively control HPAI outbreaks in south-western part of Nigeria

Isolation of Moraxella bovisfrom infectious keratoconjuctivitis in a flock of goats

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Field Evaluation of Immunogenicity of Five Commercial Vaccines Against Newcastle Disease in Poultry Farms in Ibadan, Nigeria

This study was conducted to evaluate immunogenicity of five commonly used vaccines for prevention of Newcastle disease (ND) in Ibadan, the capital city of Oyo State Nigeria. Two hundred and twenty (220) blood samples were collected from apparently healthy vaccinated chickenin 8 poultry farms in suburbs of the city. An average of 27 samples was collected from each farm.Blood samples were collected from a total of 72 breeders 88 layers and 60 pullets. Sera were testedusing heamagglutination inhibition (HI) techniquet to determineantibody levels against ND after vaccination with a commercial ND vaccine. Geometric mean titre (GMT) of antibodies against ND were calculated among flocks. The resultsindicated significant (p<0.05) difference between the vaccines used. Highest level of immunity was confered by an imported LaSota vaccine (VAC 2),while lowest immunity was confered by another imported LaSota vaccine (VAC 1).The present findings indicate that some imported ND vaccines may effectively serve as alternative to the locally produced vaccines. Routine sero-monitoring ofpoultry response to ND vaccinesis advocated to enable farmers monitor immune profile of their flocks may contribute to more effective and efficient control of ND and ensure economic performance of farms. This facility could be part of the services in State Veterinary Laboratories in Nigeria. Keywords: Hemaglutination-inhibition test, Newcastle disease, seromonitoring, vaccine efficacyNigerian Veterinary Journal, VOL:33 (2) 475-48