Carriage of Antibiotic-Resistant E. Coli by Mixed Dog Breeds in Kasarani Subcounty, Kenya: A Public Health Concern.

Abstract

Antibiotic resistance (AMR) is currently one of the most worrying trends globally, as it prevents effective treatment of diseases, some of which may be life-threatening. Pet animals are assumed to be potential reservoirs for transferring AMR to humans due to the wide use of antibiotics on pets and their close contact with humans. This study confirmed the carriage of E. coli-resistant bacteria by dogs in the Kasarani area, Nairobi, Kenya. Fecal samples were collected from 18 (11 stray dogs and 7 home-kept) dogs. The samples (14) yielded E. coli, which were further tested for susceptibility to selected antibiotics, by the agar disc diffusion method; 13 of them demonstrated resistance at various rates: highest resistance was to ampicillin (AMP) at 85.7%, followed by sulfamethoxazole (SX) at 64.3%, cotrimoxazole (COT) and tetracycline (TE) at 57.1%, streptomycin (S) at 50%, kanamycin at 21.4%, and chloramphenicol at 7.1% (1 isolate); while all isolates were susceptible to gentamycin, 3 isolates were resistant to AMP only, one of which was resistant to 6 antibiotics, while one was susceptible to all 8 antibiotics tested. Some isolates demonstrated multiple resistance; one showed resistance to 6 antibiotics tested. Antibiotics with high inclusion in the multiresistant strains were AMP and TE at 72.7% (8/11) each. The next common inclusion was SX at 63.6% (7/11), followed by COT and S at 54.5% (6/11) each. The bacteria resistant to chloramphenicol were further resistant to four other antibiotics: AMP, COT, S, and SX. Results of this study could help guide the empirical use of antibiotics in small animal practice and further provide added information on the status of AMR bacteria in Kasarani.