Biodiversity, prevalence, and risk factors associated with tick infestation of Indigenous Nigerian breed of hunting dogs in Kwara State, Nigeria

Ticks are hematophagous arthropods that cause paralysis, toxicosis, and more importantly, they harbor and transmit different pathogens affecting humans and animals. This study was aimed to investigate the species composition, richness, diversity indices, prevalence, and risk factors associated with tick infestation of indigenous Nigerian breed of hunting dogs in Kwara State, Nigeria. The study was conducted on 240 hunting dogs from six local government areas in Kwara State. The dogs were subjected to integumentary examinations and the collected ticks were collected in 70% ethanol and transported to the Laboratory where they were morphologically identified using standard entomological keys. Of the 240 hunting dogs sampled, 157 were infested with ticks representing 65.4% with a 95% CI of 59.2–71.2. A total of 1206 ticks were collected belonging to Amblyomma variegatum, Haemaphysalis leachi, Hyalomma rufipes, Rhipicephalus decoloratus, Rhipicephalus microplus, and Rhipicephalus linnaei (Audouin, 1826), with Rhipicephalus linnaei being the most prevalent. The biodiversity and species richness indices, the prevalence of the infestation patterns, cumulative counts and mean load, species of ticks based on their developmental stages and sexes, as well as the degree of tick infestation were determined. Age was the only risk index significantly associated with the infestation of ticks among hunting dogs in the study. These findings underscore the importance of implementing tick control programs for hunting dogs, which may serve as reservoirs of ticks and tick-borne pathogens for domestic and pet dogs and humans.