Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
When ticks are most active on dogs in Bejaia, Algeria
By Kebbi, Rosa et al.·Published in The Onderstepoort journal of veterinary research·2019·Department of Environment Biological Sciences·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Seasonal activity of ticks infesting domestic dogs in Bejaia province, Northern Algeria.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A study found that about 15% of dogs in Bejaia, Algeria, were infested with ticks, particularly during spring and summer. The most common tick species was Rhipicephalus sanguineus, which accounted for over half of the ticks collected. Young dogs were more likely to be infested than adults, and certain breeds had higher rates of infestation. To protect your dog from tick-borne diseases, it's important to implement effective tick control measures, especially during the warmer months when ticks are most active.
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Abstract
This epidemiological study aimed to determine the species of tick infestation in dogs, their prevalence and dynamic in the Bejaia province, northeastern Algeria. A total of 631 dogs were examined from different localities of the Bejaia province between March 2016 and February 2017. Of the 631 examined dogs, 15% were infested with one or more tick species. A total of 339 adult ticks were collected and identified, including 199 male tick species and 140 female tick species. Our results revealed that most of these were Rhipicephalus species, with Rhipicephalus sanguineus (51.32%) being the most prevalent followed by Rhipicephalus bursa (35.1%) and Rhipicephalus turanicus (12.98%). Ixodes ricinus represented only 0.6% of all ticks collected. The highest infested seasons were spring (22.55%) and summer (22.54%) and the lowest infested seasons were autumn (8.62%) and winter ( 0.9%). There is no significant difference between the sex of the animal and the prevalence of infestation (p = 0.837). Also, the prevalence of infestation by ticks in young animals was higher than that in adult animals (p = 0.550). A significant difference between the prevalence of infestation and animal breed was observed (p = 0.042). This study is the first epidemiological investigation conducted on the prevalence of hard ticks infesting domestic dogs in Bejaia (northeastern Algeria) based on conventional methods. It is therefore necessary to implement an effective tick control strategy during infestation periods in order to prevent vector-borne diseases.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31714138/