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Updated: Feb 17, 2026

Author Spotlight: Coproparasitoscopic Examination of Dog Stools for Control and Prevention of Zoonotic Parasite Diseases
Published on: December 15, 2023
Stray cats are more frequently infected with zoonotic protists than pet cats
Martin Kvac1,2, Lada Hofmannova3, Ynes Ortega4
1Faculty of Agriculture, University of South Bohemia in Ceske Budejovice, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.
Abstract:
Faecal samples were collected from cats kept as pets (n = 120) and stray cats (n = 135) in Central Europe (Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia) and screened for the presence of Cryptosporidium spp., Giardia intestinalis (Kunstler, 1882), Encephalitozoon spp. and Enterocytozoon bieneusi Desportes, Le Charpentier, Galian, Bernard, Cochand-Priollet, Lavergne, Ravisse et Modigliani, 1985 by PCR analysis of the small-subunit of rRNA (Cryptosporidium spp. and G. intestinalis) and ITS (microsporidia) genes. Sequence analysis of targeted genes revealed the presence of C. felis Iseki, 1979, G. intestinalis assemblage F, E. cuniculi Levaditi, Nicolau et Schoen, 1923 genotype II, and E. bieneusi genotype D. There was no correlation between the occurrence of detected parasites and sex, presence of diarrhoea or drug treatment (drug containing pyrantel and praziquantel). Compared to pet cats (7%), stray cats (30%) were statistically more frequently infected with protist parasites and overall may present a greater risk to human health.
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