Antimicrobial susceptibility profiles and multidrug resistance of Salmonella isolated from apparently healthy slaughter cattle in Jos, Nigeria

Salmonella is a major foodborne pathogen posing significant public health risks in low-resource settings, where poor sanitation, open grazing, and weak antimicrobial stewardship may promote resistance. This study assessed antibiotic susceptibility and resistance patterns of biochemically confirmed Salmonella species isolated from apparently healthy cattle at Jos abattoir. Using a cross-sectional design and convenience sampling technique within May 2024, one hundred fecal samples were aseptically obtained from rectal swabs with data on cattle’s breed, age, and sex. Samples were analyzed using standard microbiological methods, and antimicrobial susceptibility test was done on Mueller-Hinton agar using the Kirby–Bauer disk diffusion technique following Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) guidelines M100. Fisher's exact test was used to assess associations between Salmonella infection and demographic variables, with p-value significance at ≤ 0.05. Overall prevalence was 5% (5/100), with most isolates from crossbred cattle (60%), males (100%), and animals aged ≥2 years (80%); with only sex being significantly associated with infection (p = 0.0379), though this finding should be interpreted cautiously given the small number of positive isolates. Ciprofloxacin had the highest resistance (80%), followed by Amoxicillin/clavulanate (60%), and nalidixic acid (60%), while highest sensitivities were to ofloxacin and cefalexin (80%), trailed by gentamicin, pefloxacin, and co-trimoxazole (60%). Multidrug resistance was common, with 60% resistant to ≥ 2 antibiotics classes. Given the limited number of isolates, this resistance estimates should be interpreted with care. Despite low prevalence, resistant strains highlight possible ongoing public health risks, necessitating enhanced surveillance, AMR monitoring, and improved farm hygiene practices. Key words: Salmonella, cattle, antibiotics susceptibility, multidrug resistance, Jos abattoir, Nigeria.