How worm infections affect dog vaccine antibody levels

Abstract

Relevance. In the instructions for the use of vaccines for dogs, there is a clause prescribing mandatory anthelmintic treatment of the animal before vaccination. This is really a correct indication, since it is well known that helminthiasis affects the animal’s body, disrupting many metabolic processes and causing a number of pathological changes in the body. Helminthic infestations affect the level of immunity of the animal by changing the level of immunoglobulins, causing changes in the T- and B-systems of immunity. However, there is no data available in the literature describing how helminths affect the production of post-vaccination antibodies. This paper describes an experiment aimed at establishing how toxocara invasion affects the formation of post- vaccination immunity against canine distemper and parvovirus enteritis in dogs.Methods. The research was conducted in a shelter for neglected animals in Vitebsk. The object of research was two dogs aged 4 years and seven puppies aged 1–2 months. The animals were divided into two groups. The first group included one adult dog and four puppies. The second group included an adult dog and three puppies. Animals of both groups were vaccinated against carnivorous plague and parvovirus enteritis, but only animals of the second group were dewormed.Results. By evaluating the results of the study, it was found that helminthic invasion really hinders the development of post-vaccination immunity.