Some observations on experimental Leptospira serotype pomona infection in sheep

Authors: Hodges RT
Publication: New Zealand Veterinary Journal, Volume 22, Issue 9, pp 151-154, Sep 1974
Publisher: Taylor and Francis

Animal type: Livestock, Production animal, Ruminant, Sheep
Subject Terms: Bacterial, Clinical pathology, Diagnostic procedures, Circulatory system/haematology, Disease/defect, Zoonosis, Infectious disease, Urinary system/urology, Public health
Article class: Scientific Article

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Abstract: Leptospirosis is occasionally diagnosed in sheep in New Zealand. Hartley (1952), Salisbury ( 1954) and Webster and Reynolds (1955) have reported outbreaks in which icterus, haemoglobinuria, and high mortality were the principal clinical features, but in which asymptomatic infections were also recorded. However, no surveys to establish the incidence of leptospirosis in sheep in New Zealand have been reported. Bovine leptospirosis is common in some parts of New Zealand and since cattle and sheep may sometimes graze the same pastures the possibility of interspecies transmission should not be overlooked. The purpose of this investigation was to record some of the clinical, haematological, serological, and post-mortem features of sheep experimentally infected with Leptospira serotype pomona as a basis for assessing the importance of sheep in the epidemiology of leptospirosis in farm animals.

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