Mastitis in Camelus dromedarius in Saudi Arabia

The correlation between camels' milk samples collected from abnormal inflamed udders and samples positive in the California Mastitis Test (CMT) was +0.803 (P less than 0.01). The bacterial count ranges of milk samples differed significantly (P less than 0.05) for those with a negative CMT and those with a positive CMT. Infection with many but not all bacterial species was associated with positive CMT results. The highest percentage of camel milk samples was included in the bacterial count range of 3.0 x 10(2) to 3.0 x 10(3) cfu/ml rather than in the greater than 3.0 x 10(3) cfu/ml range for most of the bacterial species. The most predominant bacterial isolates were Micrococcus spp., Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus spp. and Corynebacterium spp. followed by eight other flora. Chloramphenicol was the most effective antimicrobial agent of six tested against 118 bacterial isolates. Preliminary observations are made on chemotherapy of mastitis cases in camels.