Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global public health threat for both human and veterinary medicine. Increasing evidence suggests that animals are important sources of AMR to humans; however, most of these studies focus on production animals. In order to determine the pattern of AMR in pets, mainly in dogs in Africa, a meta-analysis was performed with AMR studies conducted in African countries and published between January 2000 and January 2021 in four databases: Medline (PubMed), Scopus, Cab abstract and Google Scholar. Seven bacterial strains, namely Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp., Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Streptococcus pyogenes, coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (SNC) and Staphylococcus pseudintermedius were included in this study. A total of 18 out of 234 indexed articles met the study criteria. The results revealed that multiple bacteria were resistant to various commonly used antibiotics including enrofloxacin, ciprofloxacin, gentamicin, amoxicillin, clavulanic acid, cotrimoxazole, streptomycin, tetracycline and chloramphenicol. Concerning multidrug resistance, E. coli strains came first with the highest prevalence of 98%, followed by P. aeroginosa (92%) and Salmonella spp. (53%). In contrast, the overall prevalence of multidrug resistance was low for S. aureus (18%) and S. pseudintermedius (25%). It is therefore urgent to find, as soon as possible, alternatives to replace these antibiotics, which have become ineffective in controlling these bacteria in dogs in Africa. Moreover, further metagenomic studies are needed to describe the full resistome and mobilome in dogs regardless of the bacteria.

Untreated abattoir effluent constitutes potential reservoir for transmission of pathogenic strains of multiple antibiotic-resistant bacteria by pollution of surface and ground water sources. This study was carried out to determine the antibiotic resistance and extended spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) production profiles of Gram-negative bacteria isolated from effluent collected from Lafenwa municipal abattoir and its receiving surface water, Ogun River, in Abeokuta, Ogun state, Nigeria. Twelve effluent and 18 water samples were collected for this study. Total heterotrophic and coliform counts were estimated, bacterial identification was performed using standard culture-based procedures, whilst antibiotic resistance profiles of isolated bacteria against five antibiotics (ceftazidime, cefpodoxime, cefotaxime, ertapenem and amoxicillin-clavulanate) and detection of ESBLs were done using disk diffusion and double-disc synergy tests. A total of 54 Gram-negative bacteria were isolated, including Salmonella spp. (9), Escherichia coli (15), Klebsiella spp. (7), Shigella spp. (5), Pseudomonas spp. (12) and Enterobacter spp. (6). Both Enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonas isolates (31% and 66.6%, respectively) were resistant to all selected antibiotics except ertapenem (98% susceptibility). Overall, 77% isolates had multiple antibiotic resistance index (MARI) values, but none of the antibiotic-resistant isolates showed evidence of ESBL production. The presence of multiple antibiotic-resistant isolates in the effluent and receiving water of Lafenwa abattoir suggests a major risk to public health and food safety. Current methods of waste disposal at the abattoir are unacceptable and greatly reduce the qualities of the processed meat and contaminate the environment. There is a need for improved abattoir waste management and water treatment strategies.

South Africa is a large country of approximately 1.22 million km², made up of nine provinces with three climatic zones. Farming in the country is mostly defined by regional differences. Of the different organisms isolated from milk samples of dairy cows, Staphylococcus aureus poses a challenge to maintain udder health and wholesome dairy products for human consumption. Antibiotic resistant bacteria are therefore a potential health hazard. The objective of this study was to investigate the seasonal and regional relationships of antibiotic resistance of S. aureus, of which little is known. This study was undertaken to evaluate a data set of 3410 S. aureus isolates, taken from milk samples with a somatic cell count of > 400 000 cells/mL from commercial dairy herds. These isolates were tested for antimicrobial susceptibility using the Kirby Bauer method for ampicillin, cloxacillin, penicillin G, clindamycin, oxy-tetracycline, cephalexin, cefuroxime and tylosin. The samples were from 830 dairy herds, out of the estimated 2000 commercial dairy herds in South Africa. All the antibiotics tested, except for cephalosporins, showed a predicted prevalence of resistance of above 50% in most provinces, which is a concern. The lowest prevalence of resistance to the majority of the categories of antibiotics tested was present in KwaZulu-Natal during spring. The cephalosporins had the lowest levels of prevalence of bacterial resistance in Gauteng during winter. Resistance patterns of S. aureus to the eight antibiotics varied in the different seasons and provinces, possibly because of different weather conditions, and the action and spectrum of antibiotics.