Abstract:
Salmonella is one of the most comman foodborne pathogens and a serious problem with an
increasing spread of antibiotic-resistant strains. To address these significant issues cross sectional study was conducted from January 2023 to June 2024 on apparently healthy
slaughtered goats at the municipal abattoir of Harar City. This study was conducted to isolate
Salmonella, evaluate its antimicrobial susceptibility profiles, and assess hygienic practices in
slaughterhouses and butcher shops. A total of 224 swab samples were collected from abattoir
and butcher shops. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO,6579 2007)
recommended techniques were employed for the isolation of Salmonella. Isolates were subjected
to 11 antimicrobial by using the Kirby–Bauer disk diffusion method for antimicrobial
susceptibility profiles. Hygiene and sanitation data were collected using a pretested structured
questionnaire and observational checklist. The collected data were analyzed using STATA
version 15 software. Out of the total examined sample, 14.3%, were positive for Salmonella, of
which 9.8% from a butcher shop and 4.5% were from the abattoir. There is a statistically
significant difference in the isolation of Salmonella between abattoir and butchershop (p<0.05).
The two-way frequency table of association showed that there was a statistically significant
difference between the educational status of goat meat handlers with their respond on
awareness about zoonosis, wearing protective cloth when handling meat, and manner of hand
washing. The isolates were 100% resistant to Tetracycline, Amoxicillin and Ampicillin. On the
other hand, isolates were 100% susceptible Norfloxacilin, Ciprofloxacilline, Gentamycin, and
Kanamycin. Out of the total isolates, 90.65% developed multidrug resistance, with 37.5%,
43.75%, and 9.4% showed resistance for three, four, and five antimicrobail classes,
respectively. The slaughterhouses and butcher shop did not adhere to required sanitation and
hygienic conditions and multiple antimicrobial-resistant profiles of Salmonella isolates which
implies the health risk of raw and undercooked meat consumption. Therefore, training about
meat hygiene, aware the public not to consume raw meat, and regulatory control of antibiotic
usage were recomanded.
