Clinical Salmonellosis in a Closed Colony of Blood Donor Cats

An adult feline blood donor, group-housed in a closed colony with other blood donor cats in a laboratory animal facility, developed anorexia, abdominal pain, an abdominal mass effect, and hemorrhagic diarrhea. Ultimately Salmonella infection was diagnosed. The index cat and 2 additional cats in the closed colony had clinical signs consistent with Salmonella and yielded Salmonella serotype 4,12:i:- in fecal cultures. An extensive search for the source of Salmonella was unrewarding. With the implementation of individual housing and additional barrier precautions, combined with antibiotic treatment of the index case, all the cats survived and subsequently had multiple, negative Salmonella PCR test results. This case report highlights the potential for unlikely infections to occur, even in a closed colony of research animals, as well as the important role of sanitation in the elimination of this enteric pathogen.