Molecular Study of Blood Parasite Infection in Dogs Referred to Veterinary Hospitals in Tehran

Dogs are sensitive to numerous diseases, nutritional problems, and internal and external toxins and parasites. Parasitic infections in dogs are typically common and make life problematic for this animal. This research aimed to investigate blood parasites in dogs referred to veterinary hospitals in Tehran. One hundred blood samples were collected from 10 veterinary hospitals in Tehran (10 samples from each hospital) from dogs referred to them with the dog owners' permission and with the hospital authorities' cooperation. After microscopic examination (for the separation of samples with blood parasites from samples without blood parasites), positive samples (with blood parasites) were sent to the laboratory for molecular analysis to recognize the type of blood parasite. Out of all the samples collected, 15 were microscopically positive (1 to 15).

The results of the microscopic examination of the samples revealed that samples No. 4-6-7-9-10-12-14-15 were infected with Hepatozoon and samples No. 1-3-5-11 with Babesia, and samples No. 2-8-13 with Ehrlichia. Fifteen samples were also suffering from anemia, and no contamination with blood parasites was observed by microscopic examination.