Salmonella genomic island 1 and class 1 integron in Salmonella isolates from stray dogs

Stray dogs may be asymptomatic carriers of Salmonella. We identified 160 Salmonella isolates, representing 28 different serovars, from stray dogs of central Taiwan. A total of 42 (27%) of the isolates (15 different serovars) were positive for class 1 integrons, with four kinds of gene cassettes. SGI1 were present in 22 of the class 1 integron-positive isolates. This study indicates that widespread occurrence of multidrug resistant Salmonella in stray dogs and the diversity of class 1 integrons and SGI1 in different Salmonella serovars. Stray dogs may play an important role as carriers of multidrug resistant Salmonella .