Prevalence of Gastrointestinal Protozoon in Stray Dogs in the Van Province

The aim of this study was to investigate the spread of gastrointestinal protozoan parasites, which is an important issue for public health, by conducting fecal examination of stray dogs. This study consisted of 152 dog feces collected from the stray dogs brought to Van Animal Hospital and Rehabilitation Center between February 2018 and July 2018. Protozoan, oocysts and sporocysts were examined by Fülleborn flotation method and the same excrement smears were prepared and carbol fuksin and Giemsa staining method was applied. According to the results of the study, 61 (40.13%) of the 152 dogs were infected with various types of parasitic protozoan. Cryptosporidium spp. was the most common protozoon, and was recovered from 24 (15.78%) of dogs, followed by Sarcocystis spp. 18 (11.84%), Isospora spp. 13 (8.55%), Entamoeba spp. 11 (7.24%), and Giardia spp. 11 (7.24%). According to their gender, 36 (42.86%) of the female dogs were infected with parasites, while the male ratio was 25 (36.76%). There wasn’t statistically significant difference between infection status in males and fameles by gender (Chi-square: 0.581, p> 0.05). When the parasites of parasitic protozoa are examined in the point of their age; the highest rate was 35 (46.05%) with 2-5 years, 23 (37.10%) 0.5-5 years old and 3 (21.42%) 5 years old. According to age, infection status does not show a statistically significant difference (Chi-square: 3.385, p> 0.05)