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Our objectives were to evaluate the clinical efficacy of oral and intranasal administration of a commercial modified-live Salmonella Dublin vaccine in dairy calves and to determine the serologic response associated with these extralabel routes of administration. We conducted a randomized field trial with calves from a New York dairy farm following an outbreak of Salmonella Dublin. A total of 399 Holstein calves were allocated by pen to 3 treatment groups: oral vaccination, intranasal vaccination, and an unvaccinated control group. Administration of the vaccine through oral and intranasal routes did not have a significant effect on pneumonia incidence risk or weight gain; however, calves vaccinated orally and intranasally had lower mortality risk as compared with control calves. Among calves tested using a Salmonella Dublin ELISA, vaccination did not induce an increase in antibody production relative to control calves, indicating that oral and intranasal administration will not hinder diagnosis based on this assay., (Copyright © 2019 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Nosocomial salmonellosis continues to pose an important threat to veterinary medical teaching hospitals. The objectives of this study were to describe an outbreak of salmonellosis caused by Salmonella enterica serovar Oranienburg within our hospital and to highlight its unique features, which can be used to help mitigate or prevent nosocomial outbreaks in the future. We retrospectively analyzed data from patients that were fecal culture-positive for Salmonella Oranienburg between January 1, 2006, and June 1, 2011, including historical, clinical, and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) data. Salmonella Oranienburg was identified in 20 horses, five alpacas, and three cows during this time frame, with dates of admission spanning the period from August, 2006, through January, 2008. We consider most of these patients to have become infected through either nosocomial or on-farm transmission, as evidenced by molecular subtyping results and supportive epidemiologic data. Interpretation of PFGE results in this outbreak was challenging because of the identification of several closely related Salmonella Oranienburg subtypes. Furthermore, a high percentage of cases were fecal culture-positive for Salmonella Oranienburg within 24 h of admission. These patients initially appeared to represent new introductions of Salmonella into the hospital, but closer inspection of their medical records revealed epidemiologic links to the hospital following the index case. Cessation of this outbreak was observed following efforts to further heighten biosecurity efforts, with no known cases or positive environmental samples after January, 2008. This study demonstrates that a Salmonella-positive culture result within 24 h of admission does not exclude the hospital as the source of infection, and it underscores the important role played by veterinary medical teaching hospitals as nodes of Salmonella infection that can promote transmission outside of the hospital setting.

The focus of this study was Salmonella enterica serotype Cerro, a potentially emerging pathogen of cattle. Our objectives were to document the within-herd prevalence of Salmonella Cerro among a sample of New York dairy herds, to describe the antimicrobial resistance patterns and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis types of the isolates, and to elucidate the status of this serotype as a bovine pathogen. Data were collected prospectively from dairy herds throughout New York that had at least 150 lactating cows and that received clinical service from participating veterinarians. Following enrollment, Salmonella surveillance consisted of both environmental screening and disease monitoring within the herd. Herds positive by either environmental or fecal culture were sampled during three visits to estimate the within-herd prevalence of Salmonella. Among 57 enrolled herds, 44 (77%) yielded Salmonella-positive samples during the study period. Of these, 20 herds (46%) were positive for Salmonella Cerro. Upon follow-up sampling for estimation of prevalence, Cerro was identified in 10 of the 20 herds; the median within-herd Cerro prevalence was 17%, with a maximum of 53%. Antimicrobial resistance ranged from zero to nine drugs, and eight (40%) of the Cerro-positive farms generated drug-resistant isolates. Eight XbaI pulsed-field gel electrophoresis types were represented among 116 isolates tested, although 89% of these isolates shared the predominant type. Among herds with clinical cases, cattle that had signs consistent with salmonellosis were more likely to test positive for Cerro than apparently healthy cattle, as estimated by a logistic regression model that controlled for herd as a random effect (odds ratio: 3.9). There is little in the literature concerning Salmonella Cerro, and published reports suggest an absence of disease association in cattle. However, in our region there has been an apparent increase in the prevalence of this serotype among cattle with salmonellosis. Other Salmonella serotypes important to bovine health have emerged to become leading causes of human foodborne disease, and close monitoring of Cerro is warranted.