Situation of hookworm infection and changes of some hematological indicators in infected dogs in An Giang province and Can Tho city

Abstract

Situation of hookworm infection and changes of some hematological indicators in the infected dogs were investigated from September 2017 to September 2018 in An Giang province and Can Tho city. The studied results showed that the hookworm infection rate of dog in the surveyed area were quite high (56.7%), of which the infection rate of dog in An Giang was 60.61%, meanwhile this rate in Can Tho city was 52. 60%. The hook-worm infection rate of dog was identified at all dog age groups. The highest infection rate of dog was at age group from 1 to 6 months old (64.4%) and the lowest infection rate was at age group over 24 months old (50.0%), (p <0.05). The infection rate of the free grazing dogs was (77.65%), higher than that of the captive dogs (40.45%), (p <0.01). The infection rate of the indigenous dog breeds was 70.68%, higher than that of the exotic dog breeds (45.37%), (p <0.01). The hook-worm infection rate of dog in the dry season (46.32%) was lower than that in the rainy season (66.5%). The gender of dog (male and female dog) was not affected to the hook-worm infection rate (58.4% and 54.26%, respectively) in this study. The testing result for some hematological indicators of the hookworm infected dogs showed that the number of erythrocytes (4.28 ± 0.26 million/mm3), hemoglobin content (10.04 ± 0.47 g/l) and red blood cell capacity (31.06 ± 1.45%) decreased in comparison with the healthy dogs. The number of leukocytes, on the other hand, increased in the hook-worms infection dogs (20.06 ± 1.15 thousand/mm3). These are the important indicators to help in diagnosing the hookworm infected dogs more accurately.