Prevalence of Enteropathogens in Dogs Attending 3 Regional Dog Parks in Northern California

Hascall, K.L.; Kass, P.H.; Saksen, J.; Ahlmann, A.; Scorza, A.V.; Lappin, M.R.; Marks, S.L.

This study represents the largest completed to date evaluating the prevalence of bacterial, viral, and parasitic enteropathogens in apparently healthy dogs attending dog parks. A similar study investigated the prevalence of intestinal parasites in 129 dogs that attended or did not attend a dog park in Fort Collins, CO. 9 The overall prevalence of intestinal parasites in that study was 7.0%, and Giardia was detected in 3.8% of dogs, compared to 18 and 9.0%, respectively, in this study. The higher prevalence of Giardia in our study and other studies 10,18 might reflect regional differences in the prevalence of Giardia spp., differences in the susceptibility of the animals, or differences in testing methods. Veterinary students or staff members at the veterinary university hospital who owned dogs with a lower prevalence of Giardia might have been more likely to obtain medical therapies and manage gastrointestinal signs in their dogs more proactively compared to dog owners frequenting dog parks. 9 Infection with Giardia or Cryptosporidium was unassociated with diarrhea in 1 study, 9 in contrast to our study which showed an association between Giardia infection and diarrhea. Differences in host factors or Giardia virulence factors could have accounted for this difference.