‘Parasites in cat faeces can cause infections’

MUMBAI: Domestic cats in the city host parasites that can cause gastrointestinal and neurological infections if passed on to humans, says a study.

Researchers from the Bombay Veterinary College and Maharashtra Animal and Fishery Sciences University, Parel, studied faecal samples of more than 72 cats admitted to the veterinary hospital run by the Bombay Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (BSPCA), Mumbai between August, 2012 and October, 2012. The study, Prevalence of Gastrointestinal Parasites with Special Reference to Zoonotic Parasites in Domestic Cats (Felis catus) in Mumbai, Maharashtra, was published in Journal Of Veterinary Public Health in October 2017.

The concentration of parasites was the highest for Ancylostoma spp, a species of hookworm, which was found in 52.78% of the faecal samples, followed by Toxocara cati , a feline roundworm at 26.38%. The hookworm can cause malnutrition and anaemia in children, leading to complications in mental and physical development.

More than two-thirds of the faecal samples indicated at least one parasitic infestation and one in three samples showing infection by multiple parasites. While earlier studies have shown cats carry the parasites in their digestive system, this is the first such study in Mumbai.

“Gastrointestinal parasites represent major health problems in adults because of the proximity between felines and children. This study was planned keeping in mind the scarcity of information about the prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites in cats,” said Dr Shree Malkar, one of the researchers