Coprological Study to Determine the Prevalence of Intestinal Helminthes in Dogs of Nairobi, Kenya- A Potential Zoonotic Threat

A cross sectional coprological study was undertaken to determine the prevalence of intestinal helminths. Demographic data on sex,age,purpose of dog keeping,sleeping area,fecal disposal and deworming status in dogs in Kangemi area of Nairobi,Kenya was also taken.A total of 255 dog feacal samples were collected from August to October,2016 for parasitological analysis.Laboratory examination for worm eggs identification and enumeration was done using modified Mc Master technigue.Ninety samples were positive for intestinal parasites giving an overall prevalence of 35.29%. On average there were 952 and 512.5 epg for hookworms and ascarids respectively. In the sampled dogs, Ancylostoma eggs were found in 79 (30.98%), Toxocara eggs in 24 (9.41%), Trichuris eggs in 2 (0.0078%), Isosporaoocysts in 3 (0.011%) and Tapeworms in 1 (0.0039%) of samples.Ancylostomumcaninum (90.48%) and Toxocaracanis (71.54%) were the most prevalent species identified.There was no signifigant statistical difference between dog sex and worm load (P=0.9).There was high prevalence of Ascarid infection among puppies (62.5%) as compared to adults (37.5%).Most dogs (92.55%) were kept for security purposes with 53.33% not housed. In households from which samples were collected, 43.64% dispose dog feces to the nearest bush while 26.36% and 30% dispose it to garbage and pit latrines respectively.The high prevalence of potential zoonotic gastrointestinal helminthes in the study area poses health risk to the residents and calls for regular dog deworming and creation of public awareness