Vaccination against lumpy jaw and measurement of antibody response in wallabies (Macropus eugenii)

Successful protection against lumpy jaw disease in a colony of captive wallabies (Macropus eugenii) was induced by vaccination with a commercial ovine footrot vaccine. No mortalities attributable to lumpy jaw were observed in 69 vaccinated animals while six of 42 unvaccinated control wallabies died of the disease. Vaccinated animals exhibited significant increases in antibody titres to Bacteroides nodosus after the first and second doses of vaccine. Titres were measured by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.