Detection of some zoonotic agents in the domestic pigeon (Columba livia) in the city of Chillan, Chile

Introduction: There is an increase in the population of doves (Columba livia) as well as their contact with healthy and immunocompromised hosts. Objectives: detection of some zoonotic agents of the domestic pigeon (Columba livia) in Chillan city, Chile. Materials and Methods: From October 2002 to September 2003, 100 domestic pigeons were captured. Blood, organs and intestine contents were sampled from each pigeon. The samples were cultivated in different kinds of agar according to the searched microorganism. Fungi were typified by morphological studies after staining with 2% methilene blue. For the detection of Chlamydophila psittaci a commercial Elisa kit (IDEXX) was used. Results: Pigeons were registered positive for: clamidiosis (11%), staphylococosis (8%), salmonellosis (4%) and aspergillosis (1%). No pigeon had evidence of cryptococosis and listeriosis. Conclusions: these results confirm that domestic pigeon could act as vector of zoonotic agents of public health importance.