Further Studies on Klebsiella Infection In Poultry

The pathogenicity of Klebsiella organisms for chickens of varying ages was studied, and it was found that babychicks up to two weeks of age were most susceptible to in-fection with ~lebs~lla Eneumoniae and ~leb~ie~ ozae~ae, while chiokens of month of age or older were resistant toiniection. The latter may aquire the infection orally and become intestinal carriers and shedders. High mortalitieswere found among I-and 7-day-old chicks within 10 days after subcutaneous or oral administration of Klebs;ella pneumoniae and Klebsiella ozaenae as follows; 70, 40 and 40, 30 percentafter subcutaneous inoculation and 40, 30 and 30, 40 percentof oral adminstration of Klebsiella pneumoniae and Klebsi~l~aozaenae,respectively.Studying the ability of pent~ation of Klebsiella orga- nisms through chicken egg shells proved that Klebsiellan~umoniae and ~lebsiella p~aenae could pentrate the egg shells. When contamination of egg shells took place early in the embryonic life, the incidence of dead-in-shell embryoswas higher than when it took place in the late embryonic stages, but mortality among hatched chicks during the first 2 weeks after hatching was similar in both early and lateemaryonac stages and approximated in K;lebs,i,e1l .. a .Eq,e~.n:taeand Klebsiella ozaenae infections.