Canine Babesiosis in Northwestern India: Molecular Detection and Assessment of Risk Factors

In the current study, a total of 214 blood samples from dogs in and around Ludhiana, Punjab (India), suspected for canine babesiosis were examined with conventional and molecular assays. Examination of Giemsa-stained peripheral thin blood smears revealed an overall prevalence of 7.47% (16/214) for canine babesiosis encompassing 0.93% (2/214) of large Babesia and 6.54% (14/214) of Babesia gibsoni. However, molecular diagnosis revealed 15.42% (33/214) samples positive for B. gibsoni infection as evident by the presence of 671 bp amplicon. The results of multivariate analysis showed that the prevalence of B. gibsoni was associated with various risk factors, namely, age (P<0.001; OR: 0.398; CI 95%: 0.080-1.799), sex (P=0.022; OR: 0.849; CI 95%: 0.403-1.791), breed of host (P=0.371; OR: 3.345; CI 95%: 1.045-10.710), and season (P=0.230; OR: 2.143; CI 95%: 0.788-5.830). The prevalence of B. gibsoni was higher in summer as compared to winter season and in younger dogs, while breed and sex of the host were not significantly associated with the occurrence of the disease.