Abstract

Tuberculous lesions are often more confined to thoracic region and associated lymph nodes than other body parts, as mostly documented in the surveillance studies of cattle tuberculosis in Nigeria. We report a detection of combined pulmonary and a rare extra-pulmonary (mammary) tuberculosis in two zebu cows slaughtered for human consumption. Tubercle bacilli may be disseminated to different anatomic locations in diseased animals, zoonotic transmission of these infective bacilli is predominantly acquired by consumption of unpasteurized milk and its products and poorly processed meat from diseased animals. The risks of intra-and-inter species exposure to tuberculosis as it relates to predominant livestock husbandry, eating habits and food preference in Nigeria were discussed.

Key words: Mammary tuberculosis; slaughtered cattle; zoonosis; Nigeria