Seroprevalence of Coxiellosis (Q fever) in Flocks of Goat in Birnin Gwari and Maigana Agro-Ecological Zone of Kaduna State, Nigeria

Coxiellosis is a zoonotic disease caused by the obligate intracellular bacterium Coxiella burnetii which affect the prolific and reproductive competences of animals. A cross sectional study was conducted to determine the seroprevalence of coxiellosis (Q fever) in flocks of goats in Kaduna State, Nigeria.The study aimed to determinethe seroprevalence of coxiellosis in goats in Birnin Gwari and Maigana agro-ecological zone of Kaduna State, Nigeria. A total of 400serum samples from goats of both sexes and of different age groupswere collected and screened forCoxiella burnetiiantibodiesusing indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (iELISA).Out of the 400 sera analysed,8.8% wereseropositive coxiellosis. Of the 253 female goats tested, 9.5% were seropositive, while 7.5% were seropositive out of the 147 male goats tested. There was no statistically significant association between sex of goats and coxiellosis (Q fever). A significant association was detected betweenage of goatstested andsensitivity of iELISA, non-significantassociation was found between breed ofgoats with sensitivity of iELISA. The study indicates that coxiellosis exists with high prevalence predominantly among femalegoats and is major public health challenge calling for awareness amongstinterested party for organized surveillance for the diseases in goats in Nigeria.