Lifestyle as Risk Factor for Infectious Causes of Death in Young Dogs: A Retrospective Study in Southern Italy (2015–2017)

Author:

Cardillo Lorena1ORCID,Piegari Giuseppe2ORCID,Iovane Valentina3,Viscardi Maurizio1,Alfano Flora1,Cerrone Anna4,Pagnini Ugo5,Montagnaro Serena5,Galiero Giorgio6,Pisanelli Giuseppe5,Fusco Giovanna1

Affiliation:

1. Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno, Unit of Virology, Portici, Italy

2. Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Production, Unit of Pathology, University of Naples Federico II, Napoli, Italy

3. Department of Pharmacy (DIFARMA), University of Salerno, Fisciano, Italy

4. Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno, Unit of Diagnostics, Portici, Italy

5. Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Production, Unit of Microbiology, University of Naples Federico II, Napoli, Italy

6. Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno, Portici, Italy

Abstract

Infectious diseases are a common cause of death in young dogs. Several factors are thought to predispose young dogs to microbiological infections. Identifying the cause of death is often a challenge, and broad diagnostic analysis is often needed. Here, we aimed to determine the infectious causes of death in young dogs aged up to 1 year, examining how it relates to age (under and over 6 months), lifestyle (owned versus ownerless), breed (purebred and crossbreed), and gender. A retrospective study was conducted in a 3-year period (2015–2017) on 138 dead dogs that had undergone necropsy and microbiological diagnostics. Enteritis and pneumonia were the most commonly observed lesions. Polymicrobism was more prevalent (62.3%) than single-agent infections and associated with a higher rate of generalised lesions. Ownerless dogs showed over a three-fold higher predisposition to viral coinfections than owned dogs. Above all, canine parvovirus was the most prevalent agent (77.5%), followed by canine coronavirus (31.1%) and canine adenovirus (23.9%); ownerless pups had a higher predisposition to these viruses. Escherichia coli (23.9%), Clostridium perfringens type A (18.1%), and Enterococcus spp. (8.7%) were the most commonly identified bacteria, which mostly involved in coinfections. A lower prevalence of CDV and Clostridium perfringens type A was observed in puppies under 6 months of age. In conclusion, this study is the first comprehensive survey on a wide panel of microbiological agents related to necropsy lesions. It lays the groundwork for future studies attempting to understand the circulation of infectious agents in a determined area.

Publisher

Hindawi Limited

Subject

General Veterinary

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