Occurrence of gastrointestinal parasites in dogs and cats domiciliated in Santos, SP, Brazil

Abstract

Helminths and protozoa are major causes of diseases in domestic animals, and many can also cause infections in humans. Knowledge of intestinal parasitoses affecting domestic animals is important for the implementation of appropriate preventive measures. The objective of this study was to evaluate the occurrence of gastrointestinal parasites in fecal samples of dogs and cats attended at the Veterinary Hospital of the Metropolitan University of Santos, SP, Brazil. We also attempted to determine whether such infection was associated with sex, age, or the presence of diarrhea. We analyzed 100 fecal samples: 85 from dogs and 15 from cats. Among the dogs, 31.8% of the samples were positive, and to 40.0% among the cats. Infection was not associated with sex or age. However, among the dogs, parasitism showed a significant association with the presence of diarrhea (P = 0.013). The helminths Ancylostoma spp. and the protozoa Giardia duodenalis were the most frequent parasites in this research. Although they present unknown species and assemblages, they are parasites with a zoonotic potential of great importance in public health. Therefore, it is essential that pets are properly diagnosed and treated against gastrointestinal parasitic infection to prevent the spread of diseases.

Diversity of helminths with zoonotic potential and molecular characterization of Toxocara canis infecting domestic dogs from locations of Amazon and Atlantic Forest Brazilian biomes

“…This prevalence levels have been reported in several previous studies in Brazil (Oliveira-Arbex et al, 2017;Ramos et al;2020;Silva et al, 2020;Lima et al, 2021;Souza et al, 2023;Ugalde et al, 2023) and other countries, such as Mexico (Torres-Chablé et al, 2015), Algeria (Ziam et al, 2022), Nepal (Sukupayo & Tamang, 2023), Morocco (Idrissi et al, 2022) and Ecuador (Calvopina et al, 2023). Since most of the dogs investigated are adults, this data aligns with the literature, as infections by hookworms are the most common in adult dogs (over one year old) (Ferreira et al, 2016;Lima et al, 2021;Souza et al, 2023), and Toxocara sp. is a parasite more often found infecting puppies, although the infection can occur at any age (Villeneuve et al, 2015;Souza et al, 2023).…”

“…The gastrointestinal helminths most frequently fund infecting dogs are hookworms, Toxocara canis (Werner, 1782) Stiles in Stiles & Hassall, 1905, Trichuris vulpis (Froelich, 1789) Smith, 1908, Dipylidium caninum (Linnaeus, 1758 and Echinococcus spp. Rudolphi, 1801 (Neves et al, 2017;Oliveira-Arbex et al, 2017;Ramos et al;2020;Silva et al, 2020;Lima et al, 2021;Souza et al, 2023;Ugalde et al, 2023). These parasites are associated with symptoms such as enteritis, diarrhea, vomiting, weight loss and anemia, among others, negatively affecting the development of dogs (Traversa, 2011).…”

Occurrence of gastrointestinal parasites in dogs from Cuiabá, Mato Grosso

“…Regarding the analysis of risk factors, there was no association between gastrointestinal parasitism and sex, as described in another study (Lima et al, 2021). Mixed-breed dogs (35.40%) had significantly higher gastrointestinal parasitism than purebred dogs (11.98%).…”

“…This parasite occurred in dogs of all ages, of both sexes and of different breeds, indicating that there was no predisposition for its occurrence. Other studies also found a higher occurrence of this parasite in dogs: 12.94% (11/85) in domiciled dogs from Santos, São Paulo, Brazil (Lima et al, 2021); 76% (76/100) in stray dogs from Cuiabá, Mato Grosso, Brazil (Ramos et al, 2015); and 15.9% (48/302) in domiciled dogs from Villahermosa, Tabasco, Mexico (Torres-Chablé et al, 2015). Ancylostoma spp.…”

“…Some of the helminths that most frequently infect dogs are Ancylostoma spp., Toxocara spp., Trichuris vulpis, and Dipylidium caninum, and the most common protozoa are Giardia duodenalis and Cystoisospora spp. (Curi et al, 2017;Kostopoulou et al, 2017;Mircean et al, 2017;Saldanha-Elias et al, 2019;Snak et al, 2019;Regidor-Cerrillo et al, 2020;Lara-Reyes et al, 2021;Lima et al, 2021;Lopes et al, 2021;Lusa et al, 2021).…”