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The incidence of clinical mastitis (CM) in small and large-scale dairy cow farms can be highly variable and can be affected by age, parity, post-calving status, and atmospheric conditions. The current study aimed to assess the CM-incidence and its association with the post-calving days, number of lactations, season, and number of affected udder quarters in dairy cows in small-scale dairy farms. The study was conducted within one calendar year in 177 small-scale farms with 864 dairy cows. Clinically confirmed CM cows (n=72) were sampled from each udder quarter and processed for bacteriology examination. The CM-positive samples were grouped according to the season (spring, summer, autumn, and winter), the number of days after calving (180), the number of lactations (1-st, 2-5-th, and >6-th), and the number of affected udder quarters (one, two, three, and four). The CM-positive samples (n=72, 8.3%) were confirmed on bacteriology examination in significantly lower count (n=56, 6.5%). The 2-5-th lactations cows (n=35, 68.6%) were significantly more compared to the first lactation (n=6, 11.8%), and >6-th lactation cows (n=10, 19.6%). CM cows with infection of one udder quarter (n=40, 78.4%) were significantly more than the cows with two (n=6, 11.8%), and four infected quarters (n=5, 9.8%). The CM-incidence in small-scale dairy cow farms in North Macedonia was 8.3% and 6.5% by clinical and bacteriology examination, respectively. The highest CM susceptibility was observed in the cows between the second and fifth lactations. One udder quarter was most frequently affected in CM-positive cases.

Cystic echinococcosis is a cosmopolitan zoonotic infection, commonly seen in areas where livestock and dogs are kept together. The objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence of echinococcosis in slaughtered cattle and sheep in North Macedonia and to evaluate the location and fertility/sterility rates of the cysts. A total of 302 slaughtered animals were examined with visual inspection, palpation, and incision of the internal organs in order to detect cysts. Microscopic examination was carried out to determine the presence of protoscoleces. The overall prevalence of echinococcosis in slaughtered cattle and sheep was 60%. The presence of cysts increased with age in cattle. In both cattle and sheep, the most common affected organs were the liver and lungs infected with more than one cyst. The findings showed higher fertility rate in sheep which confirmed their role as the most important intermediate host. This study shows that North Macedonia is an endemic region, and serious control strategies should be implemented, with special emphasis on safety disposal of infected organs and anthelmintic treatment of the dogs.

Aedes albopictus is an invasive mosquito species spreading throughout Europe and its presence in North Macedonia was recorded in 2016. Following the first detection in September 2018, we conducted a two-week mosquito monitoring by ovitraps in order to determine if there were established populations of Aedes albopictus in Skopje, the capital of North Macedonia. Ninety-four Ae. albopictus eggs (0 to 18 eggs per ovitrap per week) were collected from 7 (14%) ovitraps in 3 (30%) municipalities. Thirty-eight eggs (40.4%) successfully hatched and the adult mosquitoes were identified by morphology and PCR. No other potentially invasive species were identified during the monitoring period. Ae. albopictus distribution is expanding and poses a risk for an Aedes-borne disease transmission in North Macedonia. The available data highlight the need for a regular monitoring for tiger mosquitoes to plan adequate control measures.

Subclinical mastitis is an asymptomatic udder infection distributed worldwide with enormous losses in the dairy industry. The study’s objective was to determine the presence of this pathological condition in small dairy farms in the R. of N. Macedonia and to identify the most common associated bacteria. Milk samples were obtained from 96 dairy cows (378 udder quarters) in seven dairy farms, in 3 consecutive samplings 24–72 hours apart. The samples were cultured on routine bacteriological growth media and incubated for 24–48 hours. The isolates were identified by AximaiD Plus MALDITOF MS Platform. Subclinical mastitis was found in 49 animals (51%) and 104 infected quarters (27%). The most frequent isolated bacteria on cow level were Streptococcus uberis (19.4%), Staphylococcus haemolyticus (13.4%), Staphylococcus aureus (7.4%) and Staphylococcu ssimulans (7.4%). On quarter level, the most isolated pathogen was Streptococcus uberis (35.6%) followed by Staphylococcu shaemolyticus and Staphylococcus aureus (10.3% and 9.2% respectively). Subclinical mastitis was found to be highly present in the selected small dairy farms. The most prevalent bacteria identified in the dairy farms (Streptococcus uberis, Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase–negative staphylococci) indicate that poor management and udder health practices, inadequate milking procedures and lack of mastitis control strategies greatly contribute to occurrence and persistence of subclinical mastitis.

A correction has been made to Abstract. The corrected section is shown below. The COST action “Standardising output-based surveillance to control non-regulated diseases of cattle in the European Union (SOUND control), ” aims to harmonise the results of surveillance and control programmes (CPs) for selected cattle diseases to facilitate safe trade and improve overall control of cattle infectious diseases. In this paper we aimed to provide an overview on the diversity of control for these diseases in Europe. A selected cattle disease was defined as an infectious disease of cattle with no or limited control at EU level, which is not included in the European Union Animal health law Categories A or B under Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/2002. A CP was defined as surveillance and/or intervention strategies designed to lower the incidence, prevalence, mortality or prove freedom from a specific disease in a region or country. Passive surveillance, and active surveillance of breeding bulls under Council Directive 88/407/EEC were not considered as CPs. A questionnaire was designed to obtain country-specific information about CPs for each disease. Animal health experts from 33 European countries completed the questionnaire. Overall, there are 23 diseases for which a CP exists in one or more of the countries studied. The diseases for which CPs exist in the highest number of countries are enzootic bovine leukosis, bluetongue, infectious bovine rhinotracheitis, bovine viral diarrhoea and anthrax (CPs reported by between 16 and 31 countries). Every participating country has on average, 6 CPs (min–max: 1–13) in place. Most programmes are implemented at a national level (86%) and are applied to both dairy and non-dairy cattle (75%). Approximately one-third of the CPs are voluntary, and the funding structure is divided between government and private resources. Countries that have eradicated diseases like enzootic bovine leukosis, bluetongue, infectious bovine rhinotracheitis and bovine viral diarrhoea have implemented CPs for other diseases to further improve the health status of cattle in their country. The control of the selected cattle diseases is very heterogenous in Europe. Therefore, the standardising of the outputs of these programmes to enable comparison represents a challenge.

A six-month-old Pomeranian male dog was referred due to a month long history of unformed, soft faeces and mild weight loss. Stool analyses by direct faecal smear, Zinc sulphate flotation and the Baermann concentration method revealed an infection with Strongyloides stercoralis. The dog was initially treated once with a combination drug of praziquantel, pyrantel and febantel (½ Drontal® Plus Tablets for puppies and small dogs; Bayer; i.e. 31.5 mg/kg bodyweight of febantel ). The treatment was repeated after 12 days with the same dosage for 3 consecutive days. The stool analyses performed 14 days and 3 months after the second treatment were negative for S. stercoralis larvae. The results suggest that a repeated treatment with Drontal® Plus Tablets is effective against S. stercoralis in dogs and has no adverse effects.

Bovine tuberculosis is a chronic infectious disease in cattle caused mainly by Mycobacterium bovis and to a lesser extent by Mycobacterium caprae. The other members of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) can also cause the disease in domestic and wild animals and all of them have a zoonotic potential. The main purpose of the study was to determine the presence and distribution of the tuberculous lesions in reactor cattle, and to isolate and identify the causative agents of bovine tuberculosis in the Republic of Macedonia. Lymph nodes and affected organs from 188 reactor cattle slaughtered due to a positive intradermal comparative cervical tuberculin test were analyzed by detection of tuberculous lesions, followed by isolation and molecular identification of the isolated mycobacteria. The isolation was performed on selective media - Lowenstein Jensen with glycerol, Lowenstein Jensen without glycerol and Stonebrink medium supplemented with pyruvate. The molecular identification of the MTBC members was performed by analysis of the Regions of difference (RD1, RD9 and RD4) and detection of single nucleotide polymorphisms in the lepA gene for Mycobacterium caprae. Typical tuberculous lesions were detected in 62 animals (33.0%) and the lesions were most prevalent in the mediastinal lymph nodes (47.5%). The isolated mycobacteria in the MTBC were identified as Mycobacterium bovis and Mycobacterium caprae and were found in both animals with visible lesions (82.2%) and animals without visible lesions (27.7%). The slaughterhouse postmortem examinations and laboratory investigations should be included on regular bases in order to improve the National eradication program.

Bacteria from the genus Brucella are causative agents of brucellosis - a zoonotic disease which affects many wild and domestic animal species and humans. Taking into account the significant socio-economic and public health impact of brucellosis, its control is of great importance for endemic areas. The chosen control strategy could be successful only if adapted to the current epidemiological situation. This implies that a choice of appropriate diagnostic procedures for detection and typing of Brucella spp. strains are of essential importance. Significant advancement of molecular techniques and their advantages compared to classical methods, give strong arguments in promotion of these techniques as a powerful tool for comprehensive diagnostics of brucellosis. Considering this, the major tasks of the study were to select and implement molecular tests for detection and genotyping Brucella spp. and evaluate their performances using DNA from cultivated brucellae (islolates) and limited number of tissue samples from seropositive animals. The obtained results confirmed that implemented real time PCR for Brucella spp. detection, as well as MLVA-16 used for genotyping, have excellent analytical sensitivity (4.2 fg of Brucella DNA were successfully detected and genotyped). Furthermore, compared to bacteriological cultivation of Brucella spp., real time PCR and MLVA-16 protocols showed superior diagnostic sensitivity and detected Brucella DNA in tissues from which Brucella could not be cultivated. Based on the summarized study results, we propose a diagnostic algorithm for detection and genotyping of Brucella spp. bacteria. Routine use of proposed diagnostic algorithm will improve the effectiveness of infection confirmation and help for accurate evaluation of epidemiological situation.

THE Republic of Macedonia is located in the southern region of the Balkan Peninsula. The country is bordered by Kosovo to the northwest, Serbia to the north, Bulgaria to the east, Greece to the south and Albania to the west. The area of the country is 25,713 km2, including around 80 per cent mountains and 20 per cent plains. The majority of Macedonia has a moderate continental climate with warm and dry summers and autumns, and relatively cold and wet winters. There had been no rabies cases reported in the country since 2000. Fig 1 shows the total number of rabies cases reported in 2010 in neighbouring countries. In those areas, the vector and reservoir of the disease is the red fox ( Vulpes vulpes ) which is responsible for more than 88 per cent of the reported cases (data extracted from Rabies Bulletin Europe). All countries (except Albania and Greece which are reported as rabies-free) are currently enrolled in oral vaccination programmes which started in Kosovo in spring 2010. In Bulgaria, the first oral vaccination campaign was implemented in spring 2009 as well. Fig 1 Map of Macedonia and neighbouring countries with distribution of rabies cases in 2010 and in …