Veterinary Preventive Medicine, Epidemiology, and Public Health Commons^™

Prevalence Of Intestinal Parasite Infection In Symptomatic And Asymptomatic Dogs In Southwestern West Virginia: The Potential Impact On Human Health, Tashina Marie Savilla

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Most dog owners are unaware of asymptomatic infection and of the possibility of contracting zoonotic parasites from their dogs. We hypothesized that parasite infection is: associated with one or more symptoms; independent of gender and age; and independent of anthelmintic usage. Stool samples were collected from 231 dogs in Kanawha County, West Virginia, and were examined by simple fecal flotation. Parasitic prevalence was found to be 23% for Ancylostoma caninum, 8% for Trichuris vulpis, 7% for Toxocara canis, 4% for Isospora species, and 32.5% overall. There was no significant relationship between infection and gender, nor between infection and symptom for …