Importation of cats and risk of parasite spread: a Caribbean perspective and case study from St Kitts
- PDF / 885,421 Bytes
- 8 Pages / 595.276 x 790.866 pts Page_size
- 112 Downloads / 169 Views
(2020) 13:488 Ketzis et al. Parasites Vectors https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-020-04365-y
Open Access
RESEARCH
Importation of cats and risk of parasite spread: a Caribbean perspective and case study from St Kitts Jennifer Ketzis1, Helle Bork‑Larsen1, Jernea Bustria1 and Anne Conan1,2*
Abstract Background: In more recent years, international travel with cats has increased. The distribution of cat parasites can change with this movement. Already, subtropical and tropical parasites have been reported by veterinarians in areas where they are not naturally present. Understanding the prevalence of tropical and subtropical parasites in Caribbean islands and the risk of importation to temperate areas could enable improved prevention recommendations and border control import requirements. Methods: We present a study focused on cat owning students enrolled in a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) programme on St Kitts. Owners were interviewed about their cats and their use of parasiticides. Cats were examined for Trichuris felis and Platynosomum fastosum using sugar flotation, Lynxacarus radovskyi using an adhesive tape test, and Dirofilaria immitis using commercial antigen and antibody tests. Results: Data on 115 cats owned by 87 DVM students were collected and 90 cats, all expected to travel to the USA, were examined. Most of the cats were adults and born in St Kitts. Prevalence was reported as 6.8% (95% confidence interval (CI): 2.2–15.1%) for T. felis, 16.2% (95% CI: 8.7–26.6%) for P. fastosum and 6.8% (95% CI: 2.5–14.3%) for L. radovskyi. All D. immitis tests were negative. DVM students reported a high level of deworming (83.3% of the cats), but the number of cats treated per recommendations were low (56.1% for endoparasites and 70.8% for ectoparasites). Also, there was a lack of clarity regarding the purpose of the treatments used and treatments did not appear to be targeted for the parasites present. Conclusion: Our results indicate a low prevalence of the parasites of interest in the DVM student cat population compared to other prevalence studies from the Caribbean. However, a degree of non-compliance with parasiticide uses and the high number of cats traveling to the USA indicate a medium risk of importation of tropical and subtropi‑ cal cat parasites to temperate areas. We recommend stronger health inspections and health screening requirements at the borders including the development of specific parasiticide protocols for cat importation. Keywords: Cat, Nematode, Trematode, Mite, Spatial movement, Prevalence, Tropical and subtropical regions Introduction In the last decades, movement of people for tourism and emigration has increased. With emigration, movement of pets between countries and continents is frequent. *Correspondence: [email protected] 1 Center for Integrative Mammalian Research, Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine, Basseterre, St Kitts and Nevis Full list of author information is available at the end of the article
Concurrently, travel with pets during holidays has increased. Wh
Data Loading...
