Zoonotic Gastrointestinal Helminthes of Household Dogs in Sokoto, Nigeria

Abstract

Dogs are most popular companion animals of man since time immemorial. These animals may harbor a variety of parasites that of serious public importance. There is dart of information regarding the role of dogs in transmission of zoonotic parasites in Nigeria and particularly in North Western (Sokoto) Nigeria. A cross sectional study was carried out in Sokoto metropolis between March and November, 2012 to determine the occurrence and prevalence of zoonotic gastrointestinal helminth parasites of household dogs. Faecal samples from 272 dogs were collected and examined using faecal sedimentation and floatation techniques. Only 196(72.06%) dogs were positive for helminth parasite infection and the most frequently observed helminthes species (eggs) in this study were Ancylostomum caninum (22.33%), Strongyle spp (72.32%), followed by Strongyloides stercoralis (16.51%), Toxocara canis (10.68%), uncinaria stenocephala (8.25%) and Taenia spp (7.77%). Eighty four (68.85%) of the male were positive for eggs of helminthes while 112(74.67%) of the female dogs were positive. Dogs with single parasitic infection 39.8% (78) were more common than those with two parasitic infection 27.55% (54), three parasitic infection 11.73%(46) while 1.47%(4) dogs had more than five parasitic infections.Statistically there was no statistical significance association between sex and infection with helminth infections (χ 2 =1.130: P=0.1439). The present study revealed that dogs' parasitic helminthes of zoonotic importance were highly prevalent in Nigerian household dogs. There is therefore, the need for intervention measures to reduce the risk of transmission of parasites from dog to man