Abstract
Livestock that have been administered an antibiotic treatment are highly likely to carry antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Because small animals (mice) live alongside livestock in stock farms and consume their feed and feces, it is possible that these antibiotic-resistant bacteria are transmitted to them. In this study, cattle and mice feces collected from the Sumiyoshi Livestock Science Station, University of Miyazaki, Japan, were tested for the presence of antibiotic-resistant Escherichica coli. Susceptibility of the E. coli isolates from the fecal samples to 11 antibiotics was evaluated using the disk diffusion method. The resistance profiles of E. coli isolates to various antibiotics were evaluated and compared between cattle and mice feces. Antibiotic-resistant E. coli were detected in 50% of cattle (5/10 animals) and 41% of mice (7/17 animals). In addition, all isolates from both cattle and mice feces had high detection rates of antibiotic resistance for ampicillin and tetracycline, and one isolate from the mice feces contained multidrug-resistant E. coli. Examination of the distribution of mice with antibiotic-resistant E. coli suggested that these bacteria are transmitted by mice and can spread to the stock farm.
