ABSTRACT

The dog has been selectively bred over millennia for various behaviors, sensory capabilities, and physical attributes. Dog breeds vary widely in shape, size, and color. They perform many roles for humans, such as hunting, herding, pulling loads, protection, assisting police and the military, companionship, therapy, and aiding disabled people. Over the millennia, dogs became uniquely adapted to human behavior, and the human-canine bond has been a topic of frequent study. This influence on human society has given them the sobriquet of “man’s best friend. A cross sectional study was used to collect five (5) saliva swab samples from apparently healthy dogs of Akpa Edem Nsukka L.G.A. Enugu state with the objectives of investigating the prevalence of Esherichia coli and Klebsiella species associated with domestic dogs in Akpa Edem Nsukka L.G.A. Enugu state. Prevalence was determined by using standard bacteriological culture techniques.

Five samples were collected from five different species of dogs in Akpa Edem Nsukka L.G.A. Enugu state and a total of 5 of 5 (100%) were tested positive to both Esherichia coli species and Klebsiella species. This showed the prevalence of Escherichia coli species and Klebsiella species infection in dogs in Akpa Edem is moderately high.
Thus, dog owners are recommended to wash their hands after any direct contact with their dogs, their products, urine, or feces. Most of the viral and bacterial infections are transmitted from dogs to humans by dog bite; however, other infections caused by protozoa have a fecal oral transmission. Thus, food hygiene such as washing vegetables well and cooking meats adequately should be carefully done in order to eliminate the rate of zoonotic infections.