The relationship between reported domestic canine parvovirus cases and wild canid distribution

Abstract

Canine parvovirus (CPV) is an important and often fatal pathogen of domestic dogs. It is resistant in the environment and cross-species transmission has been indicated in some canid populations, but never in Australia. The aim of this study was to determine if an association exists between 1. reported CPV cases in domestic dogs, and 2. the wild canid distribution in New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Reported CPV cases, and reports of the presence of wild dogs and the red fox (Vulpes vulpes), were extracted from a voluntary surveillance database and a voluntary pest reporting system, respectively. A total of 1,984 CPV cases in domestic dogs, and 3,593 fox and 3,075 wild dog sightings were reported between 2011 and 2016. Postcodes in which CPV cases were reported were significantly (P = 0.0002) more likely to report wild dogs (odds ratio 2.07, 95% CI 1.41-3.03). Overall, CPV cases were significantly (P < 0.05) correlated with both fox reports (r_SP 0.225) and wild dog reports (r_SP 0.247). The strength of association varied by geographical region and year; the strongest correlations were found in the mid-North Coast region (r_SP 0.607 for wild dogs) and in 2016 (r_SP 0.481 for foxes). Further serological and virological testing is required to confirm the apparent and plausible association between domestic CPV cases and wild canid distribution found in this study.

Keywords: Animal behavior; Australia; Ecology; Epidemiology; Fox; Microbiology; Protoparvovirus; Spatial analysis; Viral disease; Virologycanine parvovirus; Vulpes vulpes; Wild dog; Wildlife ecology.

Fig. 1

Number of canine parvovirus (CPV) cases reported to Disease WatchDog, and foxes and wild dogs reported to FeralScan within New South Wales, Australia, between 1 January 2011 and 31 December 2016.

Fig. 2

Map of canine parvovirus cases (b) reported by postcode to Disease WatchDog, and foxes (c) and wild dogs (d) reported to the online monitoring system FeralScan between 1^st January 2011 and 31^st December 2016 in New South Wales, Australia. Circle size is proportional to the number of cases or wild canid reports. Statistical Area Level 4 (SA4) region locations are shown for reference (a).

Fig. 3

Number of foxes, wild dogs and canine parvovirus (CPV) cases reported by Statistical Area Level 4 (SA4) region (ABS, 2018) within New South Wales, Australia, between 1^st January 2011 and 31^st December 2016.

Fig. 4

Odds ratios showing the strength of association between the presence of canine parvovirus reported to Disease WatchDog, and the presence of foxes (a) or wild dogs (b) reported to FeralScan by New South Wales postcode from 1 January 2011 to 31 December 2016. Error bars depict the lower and upper 95% confidence intervals. Odds ratios are depicted with a logarithmic scale.