Abstract

Cross sectional study was carried out from November, 2014 to March, 2015 to investigate the prevalence of canine babesiosis, associated risk factors and the species of Babesia affecting dogs in eight peasant associations found in and around Jimma town Western Ethiopia. Blood examination conducted on 384 randomly selected dogs showed an overall prevalence of 15.9% (61/384). The prevalence of canine babesiosis in and around Jimma town was 10.8 and 20.6%, respectively. The species of Babesia encountered in the current study were Babesia canis and Babesia gibsoni which accounted for 9.9% and 6% of the overall infection, respectively. The prevalence of canine babesia infection did not show any significant difference between dogs of different ages, origin and sex groups (P > 0.05 in each case). There was a significant (P< 0.05) association between canine Babesia infection to body condition score (BCS). The significant impacts of Babesia infection on dogs should not be neglected. Therefore, a large survey and other highly sensitive and specific molecular diagnostic tools are recommended in Ethiopia to investigate the prevalence of Babesia infection, and its associated risk factors in different areas of the country.

Key words: Babesiosis, canine, Ethiopia, Jimma, prevalence.