Epidemiological aspects about Rhodococcus equi (R. equi) at six horse-breeding farms from Bagé county, in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, were analysed. Soil samples (36) and equine feces (143) were collected. The objective was to verify the presence of R. equi in those samples. Six soil samples were also used for pH and organic matter (OM) determination. R. equi identification was based on equi factor search and morfological, tintorial and biochemistry behavior. All the horse-breeding farms had the R. equi present in soil and feces samples. Soil yielded 75.00% (27/36) positive samples and 66.43% (95/143) of equine feces were positive. The results obtained for pH and OM from the soil had no correlation with the isolation of R. equi from soil samples of the different horse-breeding farms.
epidemiology; Rhodococcus equi; isolation; soil and feces
