The study determined the relative importance of Escherichia coli, E. coli O157, Salmonella spp., Clostridium spp., rotavirus, Cryptosporidium spp., and Strongyloides westeri in foal (diarrhoeic and non-diarrhoeic) available for sampling during the foaling season of 2010 and determined their sensitivity to antimicrobial agents. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 164 foals (9 diarrhoeic and 155 non-diarrhoeic) from 15 farms in Trinidad. Isolation and detection of enteric pathogens followed standard methods, and the antibiograms of E. coli and Salmonella spp. were determined using the disc diffusion method. All organisms investigated were detected except E. coli O157. A high prevalence of E. coli (85.0%), Cryptosporidium spp. (64.8%), Strongyloides westeri (35.7%) was seen, but the prevalence was comparatively low for Clostridium spp. (12.9%), Salmonella spp. (4.4%) and rotavirus (2.1%). Only Salmonella spp. was isolated at a statistically significantly ( ; ) higher frequency from diarrhoeic (25.0%) than non-diarrhoeic (4.0%) foals. Amongst E. coli isolates, the frequency of resistance was higher in isolates from diarrhoeic compared with non-diarrhoeic foals but the difference was only statistically significant ( ; ) for tetracycline. All isolates of Salmonella spp. were sensitive to streptomycin and sulphamethoxazole/trimethoprim, a finding that may have therapeutic significance. 1. Introduction Worldwide, foals have been demonstrated to experience diarrhoeic episodes with resulting mortalities and economic consequences resulting from the morbidities, cost of treatment, and mortalities [1, 2]. It has been reported that up to 80% of foals would have at least one episode of diarrhoea within the first six months of their life resulting in severe dehydration or secondary infection in convalescents [3, 4]. Various agents, including bacteria, parasites, and viruses, have been implicated in morbidities and mortalities encountered by foals [3–6]. It has also been established that apparently healthy, non-diarrhoeic foals are also carriers of these enteric pathogens [5–7]. The frequency of occurrence of diarrhoea in foals, as well as detected of enteric pathogens have been documented to be affected by host factors including age and sex, management practices, and locations of horse farms amongst other factors [2, 3, 6]. Escherichia coli (E. coli), despite being part of the normal flora of the gastrointestinal tract of foals and other animals [8], is also known to be an important aetiological agent of foal diarrhoea [9]. The presence of virulence markers in
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