Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Intestinal parasites found in kenneled dogs in Italy study
By Simonato, Giulia et al.·Published in Parasitology research·2015·Department of Animal Medicine, Italy·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Copromicroscopic and molecular investigations on intestinal parasites in kenneled dogs.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A study found that over half of the fecal samples from kenneled dogs in rescue shelters tested positive for intestinal parasites, with Trichuris vulpis (whipworm) being the most common. Giardia duodenalis, a parasite that can affect both dogs and humans, was also prevalent, found in about 15% of the samples. While the risk of zoonotic transmission (passing from dogs to humans) was considered low, the findings highlight the importance of improving health management in shelters to ensure safer adoptions and reduce environmental contamination. Regular deworming and proper sanitation practices are essential for keeping dogs healthy and minimizing parasite spread.
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Abstract
Intestinal parasites are common in dogs worldwide, and their importance has recently increased for a renewed awareness on the public health relevance that some of them have. In this study, the prevalence of helminths and protozoa was evaluated by microscopy in 318 canine faecal samples collected from eight rescue shelters in the North-eastern Italy; 285 of them were also submitted to the molecular characterization of Giardia duodenalis and Cryptosporidium spp. isolates. An analysis was performed to evaluate the prevalence rates in relation to canine individual data, shelter provenance and anthelmintic treatments. Overall, 52.5% (167/318) of faecal samples were positive for at least one parasite. Trichuris vulpis showed the highest overall prevalence rate (29.2%), followed by G. duodenalis (15.1%), Toxocara canis (9.7%), ancylostomatids (8.2%) and Cystoisospora (5.7%). The prevalence of G. duodenalis, evaluated by real-time PCR, was 57.9% (165/285), and 79 isolates were characterized by nested PCR on the β-giardin gene. The assemblages found were mainly the host-specific genotypes C and D, while only one assemblage was identified as the human-specific genotype B1. Isolates of Cryptosporidium spp., recorded in 3/285 (1.1%) stool samples, were Cryptosporidium parvum based on the characterization of the Cryptosporidium oocyst wall protein (COWP) gene. Although the results describe a relatively limited risk of dog-originating zoonoses, there is the need to improve the quality of shelter practices towards better health managements for safe pet-adoption campaigns and a minimization of the environmental faecal pollution with canine intestinal parasites.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25687526/