Enteric protozoa of dogs: prevalence, associated risk factors and owners’ awareness in and around Hawassa town, Ethiopia

Abstract

Dogs are reservoirs of zoonotic pathogens and pose a significant health risk to humans in most parts of the world. A cross sectional study design was used to estimate the prevalence of enteric protozoal parasites in dogs, to assess the associated risk factors and the level of owners’ awareness about zoonotic implications of enteric protozoa parasites in selected subcities of Hawassa town from October 2015 to June 2016. A total of 340 faecal samples were collected and examined for enteric protozoa using flotation techniques. Of these, 171 (50.3%) dogs were infected with one or more genera of enteric protozoa parasites. The parasites identified were Sarcocyst (28.5%), Isospora (20.6%), Cryptosporidium (8.5%), Neospora (8.2%) and Giardia (5.6%). About 34.5% of the examined dogs were infected with two to four enteric protozoa parasites. The overall prevalence of enteric protozoa parasites was significantly higher in younger dogs (χ²= 20.21, p< 0.05), semi-confined (χ²= 5.63, p< 0.05) and stray dogs (χ²= 23.01, p< 0.05). The prevalence of Sarcocyst (χ²= 14.45, p< 0.05), Isospora (χ²= 4.38, p< 0.05) and Neospora (χ²= 4.31, p< 0.05) was significantly higher in stray dogs as compared to owned dogs. Most of respondents and dog owners’ (76.5%), had no awareness on zoonotic enteric protozoa parasites of dogs. But 32.8% and 23.2% the respondents’ children hug and play with dogs, respectively. Most of them (71.7%) feed their dogs with uncooked butcher leftover and/or offals. About 66.2% of them dispose of dogs’ feces with garbage. Therefore, extension works for public education to improve public awareness on parasitic zoonoses, is very helpful to reduce the problem to the possible minimum level. Moreover, a close collaboration between veterinarians and public health professionals is highly helpful.

Keywords: Dogs; Enteric protozoa; Ethiopia; Hawassa; Risk factors; Zoonotic