Bacteriological examination of pet birds’ feces for Mycobacteriosis

Abstract

The article reports findings from a bacteriological study on 232 fecal samples from 29 different companion bird species, searching for mycobacteriosis. The results of the study revealed the detection of atypical mycobacteria in 161 samples, namely M. scrofulaceum (n = 3), M. avium (n = 4), M. genavense (n = 154), which amounted to 1.3, 1.7, and 66.4% of the samples examined, respectively. Co-infections with other pathogens were detected in 62% of the examined fecal samples, independent of a mycobacterial agent’s presence. Among these co-infections, Cryptosporidium was detected in 34.0% of cases, non-acid-resistant bacteria in 32.6%, and molds and yeast-like fungi in 48.4%