Abstract
To assess the risk of zoonotic pathogen transmission as function of stray dog presence and health status, a cross-sectional study was carried out in a large city of southern Mexico that lacks comprehensive strategies for the control of stray canine populations. The photographic capture-recapture method was used to estimate the density of dogs/km2. In the same way, dog feces from 14 public parks of the city were collected to determine the prevalence and intensity of infection with gastrointestinal parasites. The canine population was estimated between 65 and 80 thousand dogs, with a population density of 1,081 dogs/km2, mostly males (71.4%). A high proportion of dogs (72.3%) were found to be in good body condition score (BCS 3). The person:dog ratio was 2.3. The likelihood of being in the BCS 2 category was lower in areas with a higher density of dogs. All feces collected from the parks contained eggs of intestinal parasites, most of them with a medium (42.9%) to high (35.7%) infection intensity, notably Ancylostoma caninum. It was recorded that cases with a low-intensity of GI infection showed polyparasitism (35.7%) associated with A. caninum. There is a large population of stray dogs that roam freely in the streets of Campeche city with access to sources of food, which is reflected by their good BCS, and dogs do not have access to preventive medicine programs (de-worming) and thus contaminate public parks with feces with significant parasitic egg loads of zoonotic importance.
Highlights
Dogs are very popular pets in all urban areas around the world, and their relation to humans has always been very close
Mainly nematodes from dogs, are Veterinary Medicine International a common environmental health risk in public parks and recreational areas contaminated by dog feces across the globe, especially in the tropics [13]
Common parasites present in dog feces collected from public areas, including Ancylostoma caninum and Toxocara canis, are zoonotic and produce clinical symptoms such as cutaneous larva migrans and ocular larva migrans, respectively [14]
Summary
Dogs are very popular pets in all urban areas around the world, and their relation to humans has always been very close. The lack of official programs to control dog populations may lead to surplus of dogs in a specific area. This problem, created by humans, very often ends in acts of cruelty towards dogs and public health problems, including attacks [7] and infectious diseases such as rabies, leptospirosis, intestinal parasites [8], Chagas disease [9], and leishmaniasis [10], among many others [11]. Mainly nematodes from dogs, are Veterinary Medicine International a common environmental health risk in public parks and recreational areas contaminated by dog feces across the globe, especially in the tropics [13]. Common parasites present in dog feces collected from public areas, including Ancylostoma caninum and Toxocara canis, are zoonotic and produce clinical symptoms such as cutaneous larva migrans and ocular larva migrans, respectively [14]
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