Clostridium perfringens type B enterotoxaemia in a Kenyan camel

ABSTRACT Clostridium perfringens toxin type B was isolated from the small intestine of a two year old weaned camel calf ( Camelus dromedarius ) in North Kenya that had died from severe haemorrhagic enteritis. The case occurred at the end of the dry season after early rains in a pasture area, heavily stocked with sheep. Clostridium perfringens toxin type B was not found in faecal samples from seven cohort animals in the same herd and from 30 age mates on the same pasture or in the same district. Sheep cannot be ruled out as a possible source of this infection. This is the first isolation of Clostridium perfringens toxin type B from camels. Key Words : Clostridium perfringens toxin type B, camel, haemorrhagic enteritis, lamb dysentery Introduction Clostridium perfringens occurs worldwide and causes disease in sheep, cattle, goats, pigs, equine foals, Old and New World Camelids and humans (Buxton 1983, Odendaal 1994, Smith and Sherman 1994, Younan and Drescher 1996, Mueller et al. 1998, Fowler 1998, Wernery and Kaaden 2002, OIE 2005).