Characterization of Klebsiella Species and Escherichia.Coli Species Associated with Domestic Dogs

Background of Study

The dog (Canis familiaris or Canis lupus familiaris) is a domesticated descendant of the wolf (Bischoffetal. 2011). Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog’s nearest living relative (Baquar et al., 2014).The dog was the first species to be domesticated, by hunter-gatherers over 15,000 years ago, before the development of agriculture. Due to their long association with humans, dogs have expanded to a large number of domestic individuals and gained the ability to thrive on a starch-rich diet that would be inadequate for other canids (Barrett et al., 2014).

Rearing of dogs and other pet animals has become increasingly popular in modern society (Bush et al.., 2015). 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” (Bass et al…, 2019).

In addition to all these, dogs, although not a conventional food-animal, is widely slaughtered for human consumption in some parts of the world, particularly Korea, China and Nigeria (Bischoffetal. 2011). The domestication and various uses of dog may not be unconnected with their unique intellect, ability to bond with humans and exceptional loyalty to the owners, keepers or care givers. As an intelligent animal, the dogs are able to understand and interpret human body languages such as gesturing and pointing, and also obey voice commands of their owners or keepers (Beutin, 2019). The ownership of a dog has been associated with a decreased likelihood of high blood pressure, obesity, and cardiovascular disease. However, there are several health hazards associated with owning dogs such as viral, bacterial, protozoal, and helminth infections; and bite and allergy. Considering the large number of people sharing their homes with dogs and the close relationship that many owners share with their dogs, the public health impacts of dogs as companion animals is important to consider, particularly with the One Health initiatives which help to integrate human, animal and environmental health (Bischoff et al., 2011).

Behavioral scientists discovered some social-cognitive abilities in domestic dog which are comparable with some of the social cognitive skills in children; but these abilities were neither possessed by other canine species nor by other intelligent mammals such as apes. As pets, the dog-owner bonding can be so strong that the owners find it difficult to give consent for euthanasia of severely ill or debilitating dogs but often prefer chemotherapy even when the prognosis is guarded. Despite the advantages inherent in domestication and use of dog, uncontrolled dog procreation or lack of proper care may increase the number of unowned dogs such as stray, roaming or wild dogs in the society (Boerlin et al., 2011). These unowned dogs constitute major health and economic problems to the public. Beyond trauma of dog bites, predation on livestock and avoidable road traffic accidents caused by these dogs, they are also responsible for transmission of numerous zoonotic diseases. Prominent among these dog-transmitted zoonoses are zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis, echinococcosis, toxocariasis and most importantly, Escherichia coli and Klebsiella (Boltonet al., 2019).

Escherichia coli normally reside in the lower intestines of most warm-blooded mammals, including dogs(Boppetal.,2019). Normally, the presence of E. coli is benign and even beneficial, but in some cases, it can cause disease, especially in newborn puppies and in those with impaired local or systemic immunity. The enteric E. coli are divided based on virulence properties into Enterotoxigenic (ETEC), Enteropathogenic (EPEC), Enteroinvasive (EIEC), Verotoxigenic (VTEC), Enterohemorrhagic (EHEC) and Enteroaggregative (EaggEC). The pathogenic strains or clones of E. coli which exist in canines are capable of causing significant morbidity and mortality in humans as well as in pets. Besides its role in gastrointestinal infections, E. coli can cause infections of the urogenital tract and systemic disease in dogs and cats. Moreover, companion animals are of importance in global antimicrobial resistance research, particularly due to the consistent intimate contact they have with humans, and thus their putative role in the transmission of zoonotic resistant bacteria like E. coli, either directly or indirectly through contact and the environment (Boothe, 2011). Bacterial urinary tract infections are the most common cause of urinary tract disease in dogs. Approximately 14 % of all dogs will acquire bacterial urinary tract infection (UTI) during their lifetimes. According to published information, the most frequently isolated bacterium from dogs with UTI is Escherichia coli, followed by Staphylococcus species.,Proteus species, Streptococcus species., Klebsiella species., Enterobacter species, and Pseudomonas species, Suggested drugs for treatment of UTI include amoxicillin-clavulanate, trimethoprim-sulfa, cepahlexin, fluoroquinolones, tetracycline and ampicillin. Alternative drugs include gentamicin and chloramphenicol. Fluoroquinolones such as enrofloxacin are particularly effective in treating UTI due to the high drug concentrations achievable within the urinary tract. In a study in the U.S, over 80% of urinary tract isolates were found to be susceptible to enrofloxacin (Bopp et al., 2019)