Prevalence of canine monocytic ehrlichiosis in dogs in and around Meerut district of Uttar Pradesh, India

Abstract

The present study was conducted to explore the prevalence of canine monocytic ehrlichiosis (CME) in dogs in and around Meerut district for its better clinical management. A total of 366 dog’s blood samples were collected from Department of Veterinary Clinical Complex, SVPUAT, Meerut and nearby private Veterinary Clinics with the history of tick infestation and characteristic clinical findings with CME and were screened on the basis of blood smear examination, followed by molecular detection by polymerase chain reaction during the period from January 2022 to June 2022. The blood smear examination with Giemsa stain detected morulae of E. canis and it showed as intracytoplasmic inclusion bodies of varying sizes and shapes in monocytes. Thirteen dogs were found positive for canine ehrlichiosis resulting in a prevalence of 3.55%. The highest affection of E. canis was found within the age group of 1-3 years (38.4%), followed by the 4-5 years age group (30.76%), then 6-7 year of age group (23.07%) and lowest infection levels (7.69%) were found in the age group of 4 month -1 year. The maximum prevalence of canine ehrlichiosis was found in Labrador (6.15%) followed by Rottweiler (5.55%), Bull mastiff (4.16%), Golden retriever (3.22%), German shepherd (2.5%), Pitbull (2.40%), and non-descriptive (1.40%) breed of dog. Higher prevalence was recorded in males (4.10%) in comparison to females (2.92%).