Ovarian hydrobursitis in female camels (Camelus dromedarius): the role of Chlamydophila abortus and a trial for medical treatment

The occurrence of Chlamydophila abortus in female camels affected with ovarian hydrobursitis and a trial for medical treatment were studied. A total of 111 cases were included in two experiments. In Experiment 1, sera from 51 affected cases were tested for C. abortus antibody using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). In Experiment 2, 60 female camels affected with bilateral ovarian hydrobursitis were divided into treated and control groups (n = 30 each). Based on the bursal diameter, females of both groups were subdivided into those having small (< 5 cm), medium (5-7 cm) or large (> 7 cm) bursae. Treated group received 20 mg/kg body weight oxytetracycline intramuscular, 4% lotagen intrauterine, and 500 μg cloprostenol intramuscular. Controls did not receive any treatment. All females were observed for 90 days non-return rate (NRR) and calving rate (CR). Antibodies against C. abortus were observed in 44/51 (86.3%) of the affected females. The 90 days NRR of the treated and control groups were 13/30 (43.3%) and 0/30 (0.0%), respectively, (P = 0.001), while the CR were 10/30 (33.3%) and 0/30 (0.0%), respectively, (P = 0.01). Based on bursal size, the 90 days NRR were 11/15 (73.3%), 2/7 (28.6%) and 0/8 (0.0%) for treated females having small, medium and large bursa, while the CR were 9/15 (60%), 1/7 (14.3%), and 0/8 (0.0%), respectively, (P = 0.01). In conclusion, it seems that C. abortus may be responsible for the spreading of the ovarian hydrobursitis syndrome in dromedaries. Small sized bursa could be medically treated.