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.

Seventy-three of the 266 (27%) scored investigatorfecal specimens were deemed to be diarrheic (fecal score ≥4) on the day of sample collection. One or more enteropathogens were detected in 114 of the 300 dogs (38%), and the prevalence of enteropathogens did not differ significantly among dog parks. There was a significant positive association between the presence and absence of 1 or more enteropathogens and increasing fecal score (P = .0039), and between the number of enteropathogens detected and fecal score (q S = 0.17, P = .0050). Dogs previously diagnosed with intestinal parasites were significantly more likely to have a higher fecal score (P = .038). Age was negatively correlated with the number of different enteropathogens (q S = À0.16, P = .0049) and was also negatively correlated with fecal score (q S = À0.11, P = .066). Risk factors evaluated including access to water in outdoor locations other than the dog park (P = .25), the presence of other household pets having diarrhea (P = .93), contact with dogs outside the household, (P = .58), attendance of the dog at day-care facilities within the previous 6 weeks (P = .29), and frequency of dog park attendance (P = .099) were not significantly associated with fecal score or the presence of enteropathogens.