Modeling the effect of sterilization rate on owned dog population size in central Italy

A spreadsheet population dynamics model was constructed to evaluate the impact of female dog sterilization on the domestic dog population for the province of Teramo, Italy. Baseline owned dog population structure as well as the annual number of births, adoptions, abandonments, and purchases were estimated based on regional managed kennel data in addition to a telephone questionnaire administered to members of the local population. Age- and gender-dependent death rates were based on domestic dog life tables. The model predicts that at the current female dog sterilization rate of 30%, the owned dog population will most probably continue to increase. After 20 years, a mean annual increase of 2.6% (median: 2.5%, 95% CI: −3.2% to 8.8%) is projected assuming that the average age at sterilization is 3 years. A sterilization rate of at least 55% is estimated to be needed to halt population growth if the current age structure for female dog sterilization is maintained. However, if the province of Teramo were to focus on sterilizing female dogs less than 1 year of age, the required sterilization rate to arrest population growth could be reduced to as low as 26%.     

Cross-sectional survey of pet ownership,veterinary service utilisation,and pet-related expenditures in New Zealand

ABSTRACT

Aims: To describe the demographics of and predictors for pet ownership, reasons for visiting a veterinarian, and pet-related expenditure in pet owners in New Zealand.

Methods: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted from 18–22 June 2015 using a permission-based panel of New Zealand residents aged ≥18 years. Questions included demographics of respondents, number of pets and reasons for owning or not owning pets, number of visits and reasons for visiting a veterinarian, and pet-related expenditure.

Results: Of the 1,572 respondents who completed the survey, 1,013 (64.4%) owned ≥1 pet. Of these, 443 owned dogs, 696 cats, 32 horses, 103 birds, 55 rabbits, and 159 owned fish. Companionship was the most common reason for getting dogs, cats, and birds; horses were mostly owned as a hobby, rabbits to provide fun for children, and fish as a source of relaxation. The majority of dog, cat, and rabbit owners considered their pets to be family members; horse owners almost equally considered their horses a hobby or a family member. The odds of pet ownership increased for respondents from a rural region, having a higher household income, having children and being female. Overall, 711/1,013 (70.2%) pet-owning respondents had taken ≥1 animal to the veterinarian in the previous year, with the most common reasons being for vaccination or annual check-ups or health issues. Respondents who considered their pets trusted companions, had a higher income, and owned dogs or cats compared with other species, were most likely to have taken their pet to a veterinarian. The greatest pet-related expenditure for all species was food. The median yearly veterinary expenditure was $200–499 by dog owners, $100–199 by cat owners, and <$100 by horse, bird, rabbit, and fish owners. The best source of information for pet-related issues was considered to be veterinarians by 724/1,001 (72.3%) owners, and the internet by 509/1,001 (50.8%) owners.

Conclusions: Among survey respondents, pet ownership was common and pets filled a variety of roles in the household. Pet owners reported spending considerable amounts of money on their pets each year, but some of them may be underutilising veterinary services despite veterinarians being considered as valuable sources of information about pet-related issues.     

Educational intervention on dog sterilization and retention in Taiwan

We conducted a controlled randomized study to evaluate whether an educational intervention could alter dog owners’ decisions to have their dogs sterilized and to retain the dogs in the household.

One hundred and twenty-six new dog owners were recruited from 15 animal clinics across Taiwan and were successfully followed up for 3–8 months. Among them, 66 were randomly assigned to the intervention group and the other 60 were in the control group. At the end of the study, 22 had their dogs sterilized and 23 reported having an unsuccessful dog ownership. The educational intervention did not affect the owners’ decisions to sterilize their dogs (hazard rate ratio (HRR) for the intervention group against control group = 0.7, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.4, 1.3). We found a heterogeneous effect of the applied education on the rate of unsuccessful dog ownership. The intervention group had a higher rate of unsuccessful ownership than the control group in the first 4 months of their ownership (HRR = 19.2, 95% CI = 4.6, 79.7), and the effect reversed after 4 months (HRR = 0.5, 95% CI = 0.2, 1.1).     

A survey on canine leishmaniasis and phlebotomine sand flies in central Italy

Zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis (ZVL) is a vector-transmitted zoonosis caused by the parasitic protozoan Leishmania infantum. Bloodsucking sand flies of the subfamily Phlebotominae are the obligatory insect hosts, and the dog is the only domestic reservoir.This study reports data from a survey of canine infection and sand fly phlebotomine monitoring in the province of Perugia in central Italy. The overall seroprevalence in a total of 100 dogs tested was 8% (95% confidence interval: 3.8-15.6%). Data analysis revealed that serological positivity was statistically associated with age (p-value = 0.03) and the area where dogs lived. Standard blacklight traps employed for sampling Culicoides midges in bluetongue disease surveillance were used in phlebotomine monitoring. A total of 5698 sand flies were collected and the two species, Leishmania competent vectors, were identified, Phlebotomus perfiliewi (50%) and Phlebotomus perniciosus (30%).     

The Use of Insect Development Inhibitors as an Oral Medication for the Control of the Fleas Ctenocephalides felis, Ct. canis in the Dog and Cat

Résumé— Il existe deux inhibiteurs de croissance des insectes (ICI) sous forme orale pour le contrôle des puces. Le lufénuron s'administre une fois par mois à la dose de 10 mg/kg chez le chien et 30 mg/kg chez le chat. La cyromazine s'administre quotidiennement à la dose de 10 mg/kg en association avec la diethylcarbamazine chez le chien. Aucun des deux produits n'est actif sur la puce adulte, mais cause plutôt une interruption de la production de chitine normale par différents modes d'actions spécifiques. Ceci entraine la mort des formes immatures de puces. Par conséquent, les 2 produits contrôle l'infestation par les puces adultes sur l'animal par le biais de l'élimination des formes immatures présentes dans le milieu. Il existe un délai de 6 à 8 semaines entre 1'administration d'inhibiteurs de croissance des insectes (ICI) et la reduction du nombre de puces adultes sur les animaux traités. Cette période réfractaire est due à la survie de puces immatures présentes dans le milieu avant le traitement aux ICI; elle peut être réduite si l'on démarre le traitement oral par les ICI simultanément à un traitement insecticide du milieu environnant et de l'animal. [Shipstone, M. A., Mason, K. V. The use of Insect Development Inhibitors as an oral medication for the control of the fleas Ctenocephalides felis, Ct. canis in the dog and cat (Utilisation d'inhibiteurs de croissance des insectes sous forme orale pour le contrôle des puces Ctenocephalides felis, Ct. canis chez le chien et le chat). Resumen— Existen dos inhibidores del desarrollo de insectos (ICI) para el control de pulgas. El Lefenuron se administra una vez al mes a una dosis de 10 mg × Kg^-1 en perros y 30 mg × Kg^-1 en gatos. La Ciromacina se administra diariamente a una dosis de 10 mg × Kg^-1 en combinación con citrato de dietilcarbamacina en perros. Ninguno de estos compuestos produce efecto en pulgas adultas, sino que causa una interrupción en la producción normal de quitina por distintos mecanismos de acción. Ello causa la muerte del parásito en estadíos de inmadurez y crecimiento. Así, ambos controlan la infestación por pulgas adultas en el animal mediante la eliminación de estadíos vitales de la pulga. Existe un espacio de tiempo de 6–8 semanas entre el inicio de la aministración de ICA y la reducción del número de pulgas en animales tratados. Ésto et debido a la supervivencia de pulgas inmaduras que se encontraban en el entorno antes del inicio del tratamiento con ICI; este periodo de tiempo se puede reducir iniciando el tratamiento oral con ICI junto con tratamiento insecticida de la vivienda y sobre el animal. [Shipstone, M. A., Mason, K. V. The use of Insect Development Inhibitors as an oral medication for the control of the fleas Ctenocephalides felis, Ct. canis in the dog and cat (El uso de inhibidores del desarrollo de insectos como medicación oral para el control de las pulgas Cenocephalides felis y Ct. canis en el perro y en el gato). Abstract— There are two oral Insect Development Inhibitors (IDI) for the control of fleas. Lufenuron is administered once a month at 10 mg × kg^-1 for dogs and 30 mg × kg^-1 for cats. Cyromazine is administered daily at 10 mg kg^-1 in combination with diethylcarbamazine citrate for dogs. Neither compound exerts an effect on the adult flea, but rather causes an interruption in normal chitin production through different specific modes of action. This causes death of the immature, developmental life stages of the flea. Thus, both control the adult flea infestation on the animal via the elimination of the environmental life stages of the flea. There is a lag phase of 6–8 weeks between the initiation of IDI administration and reduction in the number of adult fleas on the treated animals. The lag phase results from the survival of immature fleas that were present in the environment before the onset of IDI treatment; it can be reduced by initiating oral IDI treatment in combination with premise and on-animal insecticide treatments.     

Occurrence of anthelmintic resistant equine cyathostome populations in central and southern Italy

In the present survey, 276 horses bred on 16 farms located in central and southern Italy were investigated for the presence of drug resistant cyathostomes by a Fecal Egg Count Reduction Test (FECRT). Sixteen to 20 animals were selected on each farm and randomly assigned to one of four equally sized treatment groups. Groups were treated with fenbendazole, pyrantel pamoate, ivermectin or moxidectin. Resistance to fenbendazole was declared on six farms (37.5%) and suspected in two farms (12.5%), with FECR values ranging from 41% to 88.3%. Resistance to pyrantel was found in two farms (12.5%) and was suspected in one case (6.2%), with FECR values ranging from 43% to 85.4%. Macrocyclic lactones remained effective on all farms. Only cyathostome third stage larvae (L3) were found in fecal cultures after treatment. This paper reports the first wide survey conducted in Italy for anthelmintic resistance in equine cyathostomes. The results indicate that multiple drug resistant equine cyathostomes are present in the central and southern regions of Italy. These data call for a geographically and numerically broader investigation of horse farms in all regions and for the development and implementation -among veterinarians, owners and managers of a plan to reduce the expansion of these anthelmintic resistant populations and control these important parasites.     

Effect of owner experience,living environment,and dog characteristics on owner reports of behavior of Argentine Dogos in Italy

Previous research reported contrasting results on the effect of owner experience on dog behaviors. This may be because of dog breed genetic variability, differences in expectations, management choices, and attitude toward their dogs by owners of dogs of different breeds. A study of a single breed may help provide a better insight into this issue. A convenience sample of 94 participants, owners of 181 Argentine Dogos, was recruited to provide information on their dogs' behaviors through a questionnaire. Participants were classified according to their previous general experience or inexperience with dogs and whether they had previously owned an Argentine Dogo (expert vs. naive owners). Reasons for getting a dog (companionship, guarding, hunting, breeding) and attendance at dog-training classes were also explored. Pearson chi-square tests and binary logistic regressions were used to analyze the data. Previous inexperience with dogs was associated with a higher prevalence of dogs that were fearful of children and unknown dogs. Naive Dogo owners perceived that their dogs were more obedient and friendly toward strangers but aggressive toward children, than those belonging to Argentine Dogo experts. It also appeared that living environment and the dog's age are critical predictors of many outcome variables. Kennel living was found to be predictive of car and food protection, owner-directed aggression and aggression toward children, whereas house living was associated with fear of loud noises. Changes related to the dogs' age were probably related to behavioral development in the dogs. Destructiveness, excessive body licking, and protective aggression were more common in younger dogs, whereas aggression to unknown dogs was more common in older ones. Protective aggression was more common in males, and fear of startling noises was more common in females. Intact dogs showed a higher probability of having attention-getting behavior, and neutered dogs were more fearful of traffic. Our findings are correlative. Even if causative links cannot be made, our findings certainly provide direction for further investigation.     

Clinicopathological findings, molecular detection and characterization of Babesia gibsoni infection in a sick dog from Italy

A 4-year-old intact female American Pit Bull Terrier from Italy descendant of an American-born bitch was evaluated for anorexia, lethargy, weakness, and intermittent vomiting. On physical examination, the dog was dehydrated, had pale mucous membranes, hunched posture and abdominal pain. A moderate anemia was observed. Splenomegaly and hyperechoic regions suspected as infarcts in the spleen were seen on abdominal ultrasound. Based on the suspicion of splenic torsion, splenectomy was performed. After surgery, the clinical condition deteriorated. A follow-up complete blood count demonstrated severe macrocytic normochromic anemia with evidence of marked regeneration, left shift neutrophilia, monocytosis and marked thrombocytopenia. Blood smear evaluation revealed single to multiple, variable sized (1–3 μm in diameter), and round to oval to band-like piroplasms within many red blood cells consistent with small form Babesia spp. or Theileria spp. A partial segment of the 18S rRNA gene was amplified and the PCR product was analyzed by direct sequencing. The nucleotide sequence was completely identical to that of Babesia gibsoni present in GenBank^®. This is the first molecular detection and characterization of B. gibsoni infection in a sick dog from Italy.