Investigation of Factors Associated with Subclinical Infections of Giardia duodenalis and Cryptosporidium canis in Kennel-Housed Dogs (Canis lupus familiaris).

Giardia duodenalis and Cryptosporidium spp. are zoonotic protozoal pathogens, spread by a fecal-oral route, which can infect a wide range of hosts including but not limited to dogs and humans. Giardia was recently estimated to be present in 37% to 50% of kennel-housed dogs. Cryptosporidium infections in kennel-housed dogs have been reported in 7% to 21% of the population. The goal of this study was to define demographic factors and fecal scores associated with positive screening test cases of Giardia and Cryptosporidium in kennel-housed laboratory dogs in the state of Texas. Fecal samples were collected from 153 clinically normal laboratory dogs at an academic research facility and a local laboratory dog supplier. We used 3 diagnostic tests evaluated in parallel to determine test positivity to each organism: a human point-of-care coproantigen test, a direct immunofluorescent assay, and an in-house polymerase chain reaction. Dogs were significantly more likely to test positive for Giardia (45%) than Cryptosporidium (7%) (P < 0.01). Dogs that were 18 mo of age or younger had 3 times the odds (P = 0.009) of subclinical Giardia infection compared with older dogs. We found no significant relationship between age and Cryptosporidium prevalence. Dogs with hard feces (fecal score 1-2) at the time of screening had 0.34 times lower odds (P = 0.049) of testing positive for Giardia than dogs with normal feces, but no statistically significant relationship was found between fecal score and Cryptosporidium-positive test status. With these findings, we demonstrated the value of considering age and fecal score when choosing which dogs to screen for subclinical Giardia. Additional studies with larger sample sizes should be conducted to determine the relationship between age and fecal score and subclinical Cryptosporidium infection.

Aural hematoma in lambs associated with Otobius megnini (Ixodida: Argasidae) infestation.

In this report we described a case of aural hematomas in three lambs associated with Otobius megnini (Ixodida: Argasidae) infestation. From April to May 2021, five 3-month-old Hampshire cross lambs presented with unilateral aural hematomas. Upon otoscopic examination, engorged soft ticks (O. megnini) were observed in the external ear canals of three of the five lambs. The remaining two lambs had lesions consistent with infestation and were in a shared environment and deemed likely to have been infected. The treatment of all animals was based on the drainage of the serosanguinous fluid through an incision in the internal space of the ear pinna. Upon physical inspection of the entire flock (n = 310), O. megnini infestation was observed in one additional animal that did not have a hematoma. Following animal and environmental ectoparasiticide treatment with permethrin, no recurrences or additional cases of aural hematomas were observed in the flock in the following two-year period. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first description of aural hematomas in lambs associated with O. megnini infestation with successful recovery after surgery and off-label acaricide treatment.

Comparison of 3 Diagnostic Tests for the Detection of Giardia and Cryptosporidium spp. in Asymptomatic Dogs (Canis lupis familiaris).

After detecting Giardia and Cryptosporidium infections and coinfections in 2 litters of puppies in our vivarium, our team realized that we needed a simple, quick, and economical point-of-care test for concurrent screening of asymptomatic dogs for both organisms. Periodic screening of colony dogs and of all dogs introduced into a colony can prevent the spread of Giardia and Cryptosporidium to immunologically naïve animals and help keep staff safe from these zoonotic organisms. To compare methods for diagnosing Giardia and Cryptosporidium spp. in dogs, we used a convenience sampling of feces from 2 popula- tions of dogs; samples were tested with a lateral-flow assay (QC), a commercially-available direct fluorescent assay (DFA), and an inhouse PCR test using established primers. QC results were analyzed in 2 ways: 1) relative to a reference standard that permitted comparative interpretation of DFA and PCR results; and 2) using Bayesian analysis for comparison independent of a reference standard. The QC test showed good specificity for the detection of Giardia according to both the reference standard (95%) and the Bayesian analysis (98%). Similarly, specificity of the QC for the detection of Cryptosporidium was 95% according to the reference standard and 97% according to Bayesian analysis. However, the sensitivity of the QC test was much lower for both Giardia (reference standard, 38%; Bayesian analysis, 48%) and Cryptosporidium (25% and 40%, respectively). This study demonstrates that the QC test can be used to detect both Giardia and Cryptosporidium in dogs and that positive results can be accepted with confidence, whereas negative tests should be confirmed through secondary testing methods.