Diagnosis of gastrointestinal parasite in carnivorous mammals in captivity in Mexico

Parasitic diseases of wild species are of importance because of their direct or indirect effect on the animal population, as well as their epidemiological importance and their relationship with human and/or domestic animal health. The objective of this study was to determine the presence of gastrointestinal parasites in captive carnivorous mammals. Fecal samples were collected from 39 animals and analyzed by flotation (sucrose-saturated solution) and rapid sedimentation (physiological solution) techniques to search for parasites through their various forms (eggs, larvae, cysts or oocysts). The prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites was 46.15% and 5 genera of parasites were identified. Of the parasites found, most were nematodes, with the genus Toxascaris sp. being the most frequent, followed by Toxocara sp. and Syphacia sp. These are identified in black and spotted jaguar, African lion, white lion, puma, Bengal tiger, spotted hyena and raccoon. In addition, protozoa (Eimeria sp.) are identified in dingo, leopard and raccoon, and cestodes (Mesocestoides sp.) in Bengal tiger. This work allowed us to determine the sanitary status, in terms of the possible existence of gastrointestinal parasites that infect the population of carnivorous mammals in captivity.