Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Endoparasite infections in dogs and cats at a Canadian vet hospital
By Morandi, Benedetto et al.·Published in Preventive veterinary medicine·2020·Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences, Italy·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Endoparasites in dogs and cats diagnosed at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital (VTH) of the University of Prince Edward Island between 2000 and 2017. A large-scale retrospective study.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A study looked at endoparasites, which are internal parasites, in dogs and cats treated at a veterinary hospital in Canada from 2000 to 2017. They found that about 14.6% of pets tested positive for parasites, with cats showing higher rates than dogs. The most common parasites identified were Giardia, Cystoisospora, and Toxocara. Young, female dogs were more likely to be infected, especially in the fall. This information can help pet owners understand the risks of parasites and the importance of regular fecal testing to keep their pets healthy.
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Abstract
Although many studies on the frequency of endoparasites in dogs and cats in Canada have been reported, seasonal and/or annual patterns are often not evaluated. The frequency and risk factors of endoparasite infections from fecal samples of cats and dogs submitted to the Veterinary Teaching Hospital of the Atlantic Veterinary College, University of Prince Edward Island-Canada were determined, using univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses. Investigated predictors of endoparasitism available in the 2000-2017 database included sex, age, geographic origin and seasonality. A total of 15,016 dogs and 2,391 cats were evaluated for endoparasite status using specific diagnostic tests: direct smear, Baermann, and/or 33 % zinc sulfate solution in a standardized centrifugal flotation method. Overall, twelve and eight parasite genera were detected in dogs and cats, respectively. The overall proportional infection was 14.6 %, and the cat population showed a higher frequency of positivity to parasites compared to the dog population (P < 0.001). The most frequent genera recovered in the whole population (dogs and cats), were Giardia duodenalis (5.2 %), Cystoisospora spp. (3.3 %) and Toxocara spp. (3.2 %). Endoparasitism levels were diagnosed more in feces submitted from young, female intact dogs from PEI compared to the baselines of mature, sterilized male dogs from other provinces, respectively, and diagnoses occurred more often in autumn months than in winter months. There was no significant diagnostic trend across the years for the individual parasites models. The frequency of detected potentially zoonotic parasites in this study highlights the veterinary public health and One Health context of parasitic infections in pets. Although the presented results are not from a random sample and therefore frequency results should be interpreted with caution, the model relationship results may still be relevant. In addition, results are of value to estimate parasite impact and to assist researchers, veterinarians and pet-owners with suitable information to control parasites.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31896503/