Ixodid ticks on dogs in the eastern region of the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa.

Abstract

The objective of this study was to determine the species composition and geographic distribution of ixodid ticks infesting domestic dogs in the eastern region of the Eastern Cape Province. Seventy-two communal cattle dip-tanks within this region were randomly selected as survey localities and their geographic coordinates recorded. In addition to ticks that were collected from five cattle and five goats at each of the dip-tanks, ticks were also collected from five dogs whenever possible. No dogs were available at 19 dip-tanks and no ticks were collected from dogs at 13 dip-tanks, while ticks were collected from 132 of 200 dogs at 40 dip-tanks. Eight ixodid tick species were collected from these dogs, and Haemaphysalis leachi followed by Rhipicephalus appendiculatus and Rhipicephalus simus were present on dogs at the largest number of dip-tanks. Seven dogs were simultaneously infested with three tick species and one with four species. The geographic distributions of Amblyomma hebraeum, H. leachi, R. appendiculatus and R. simus recovered from the dogs lay within the ranges previously reported for these ticks.