Review

. 2022 Nov 8;15(1):415.

doi: 10.1186/s13071-022-05553-8.

Vector-borne and other pathogens of potential relevance disseminated by relocated cats

Ricardo Guillermo Maggi^#¹, Vicky Halls^#², Friederike Krämer^#³, Michael Lappin^#⁴, Maria Grazia Pennisi^#⁵, Andrew S Peregrine^#⁶, Xavier Roura^#⁷, Bettina Schunack^#⁸, Valeria Scorza^#⁴, Séverine Tasker^#^{9

10}, Gad Baneth^#¹¹, Patrick Bourdeau^#¹², Dwight D Bowman^#¹³, Edward B Breitschwerdt^#¹⁴, Gioia Capelli^#¹⁵, Luís Cardoso^#¹⁶, Filipe Dantas-Torres^#¹⁷, Gerhard Dobler^#¹⁸, Lluís Ferrer^#¹⁹, Luigi Gradoni^#²⁰, Peter Irwin^#²¹, Frans Jongejan^#²², Volkhard A J Kempf^#²³, Barbara Kohn^#²⁴, Susan Little^#²⁵, Maxime Madder^#²⁶, Carla Maia^#²⁷, Mary Marcondes^#²⁸, Guadalupe Miró^#²⁹, Torsten Naucke^#³⁰, Gaetano Oliva^#³¹, Domenico Otranto^#³², Barend L Penzhorn^#²², Martin Pfeffer^#³³, Ángel Sainz^#²⁹, SungShik Shin^#³⁴, Laia Solano-Gallego^#¹⁹, Reinhard K Straubinger^#³⁵, Rebecca Traub^#³⁶, Ian Wright^#³⁷

Affiliations

¹ Department of Clinical Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA. rgmaggi@ncsu.edu.
² International Cat Care, Tisbury, Wiltshire, UK.
³ TransMIT GmbH, Giessen, Germany.
⁴ Department of Clinical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA.
⁵ Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Messina, Messina, Italy.
⁶ Department of Pathobiology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada.
⁷ Hospital Clínic Veterinari, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
⁸ Bayer Animal Health, Elanco Animal Health Inc, Leverkusen, Germany.
⁹ Bristol Veterinary School, University of Bristol, Langford, UK.
¹⁰ Linnaeus Veterinary Limited, Shirley, UK.
¹¹ Koret School of Veterinary Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot, Israel.
¹² Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire, Nantes, France.
¹³ Department Microbiology & Immunology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA.
¹⁴ Department of Clinical Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA.
¹⁵ Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale Delle Venezie, Legnaro, Italy.
¹⁶ Department of Veterinary Sciences, and Animal and Veterinary Research Centre (CECAV), University of Trás-Os-Montes E Alto Douro (UTAD), Vila Real, Portugal.
¹⁷ Aggeu Magalhães Institute, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (Fiocruz), Recife, Brazil.
¹⁸ Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology, Munich, Germany.
¹⁹ Department Animal Medicine and Surgery, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
²⁰ Istituto Superiore Di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
²¹ College of Veterinary Medicine, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA, Australia.
²² Department of Veterinary Tropical Diseases, University of Pretoria, Onderstepoort, South Africa.
²³ Institute for Medical Microbiology and Infection Control and National Consiliary Laboratory for Bartonella (appointed by the Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany), Goethe-University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany.
²⁴ Clinic of Small Animals, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
²⁵ Department of Pathobiology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, USA.
²⁶ Clinglobal, Tamarin, Mauritius.
²⁷ Global Health and Tropical Medicine, Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal.
²⁸ School of Veterinary Medicine, São Paulo State University, São Paulo, Brazil.
²⁹ Animal Health Department, Veterinary Faculty, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
³⁰ LABOKLIN GmbH, Bad Kissingen, Germany.
³¹ Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Production, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy.
³² Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bari Aldo Moro, Bari, Italy.
³³ Institute of Animal Hygiene and Veterinary Public Health, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
³⁴ College of Veterinary Medicine, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, South Korea.
³⁵ Chair for Bacteriology and Mycology, Faculty for Veterinary Medicine, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany.
³⁶ Melbourne Veterinary School, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia.
³⁷ The Mount Veterinary Practice, Fleetwood, Lancashire, UK.

^# Contributed equally.

PMID: 36348395
PMCID: PMC9643929
DOI: 10.1186/s13071-022-05553-8

Review

Vector-borne and other pathogens of potential relevance disseminated by relocated cats

Ricardo Guillermo Maggi et al. Parasit Vectors. 2022.

. 2022 Nov 8;15(1):415.

doi: 10.1186/s13071-022-05553-8.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Clinical Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA. rgmaggi@ncsu.edu.
² International Cat Care, Tisbury, Wiltshire, UK.
³ TransMIT GmbH, Giessen, Germany.
⁴ Department of Clinical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA.
⁵ Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Messina, Messina, Italy.
⁶ Department of Pathobiology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada.
⁷ Hospital Clínic Veterinari, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
⁸ Bayer Animal Health, Elanco Animal Health Inc, Leverkusen, Germany.
⁹ Bristol Veterinary School, University of Bristol, Langford, UK.
¹⁰ Linnaeus Veterinary Limited, Shirley, UK.
¹¹ Koret School of Veterinary Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot, Israel.
¹² Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire, Nantes, France.
¹³ Department Microbiology & Immunology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA.
¹⁴ Department of Clinical Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA.
¹⁵ Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale Delle Venezie, Legnaro, Italy.
¹⁶ Department of Veterinary Sciences, and Animal and Veterinary Research Centre (CECAV), University of Trás-Os-Montes E Alto Douro (UTAD), Vila Real, Portugal.
¹⁷ Aggeu Magalhães Institute, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (Fiocruz), Recife, Brazil.
¹⁸ Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology, Munich, Germany.
¹⁹ Department Animal Medicine and Surgery, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
²⁰ Istituto Superiore Di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
²¹ College of Veterinary Medicine, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA, Australia.
²² Department of Veterinary Tropical Diseases, University of Pretoria, Onderstepoort, South Africa.
²³ Institute for Medical Microbiology and Infection Control and National Consiliary Laboratory for Bartonella (appointed by the Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany), Goethe-University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany.
²⁴ Clinic of Small Animals, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
²⁵ Department of Pathobiology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, USA.
²⁶ Clinglobal, Tamarin, Mauritius.
²⁷ Global Health and Tropical Medicine, Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal.
²⁸ School of Veterinary Medicine, São Paulo State University, São Paulo, Brazil.
²⁹ Animal Health Department, Veterinary Faculty, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
³⁰ LABOKLIN GmbH, Bad Kissingen, Germany.
³¹ Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Production, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy.
³² Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bari Aldo Moro, Bari, Italy.
³³ Institute of Animal Hygiene and Veterinary Public Health, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
³⁴ College of Veterinary Medicine, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, South Korea.
³⁵ Chair for Bacteriology and Mycology, Faculty for Veterinary Medicine, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany.
³⁶ Melbourne Veterinary School, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia.
³⁷ The Mount Veterinary Practice, Fleetwood, Lancashire, UK.

^# Contributed equally.

PMID: 36348395
PMCID: PMC9643929
DOI: 10.1186/s13071-022-05553-8

Abstract

Large populations of unowned cats constitute an animal welfare, ecological, societal and public health issue worldwide. Their relocation and homing are currently carried out in many parts of the world with the intention of relieving suffering and social problems, while contributing to ethical and humane population control in these cat populations. An understanding of an individual cat's lifestyle and disease status by veterinary team professionals and those working with cat charities can help to prevent severe cat stress and the spread of feline pathogens, especially vector-borne pathogens, which can be overlooked in cats. In this article, we discuss the issue of relocation and homing of unowned cats from a global perspective. We also review zoonotic and non-zoonotic infectious agents of cats and give a list of practical recommendations for veterinary team professionals dealing with homing cats. Finally, we present a consensus statement consolidated at the 15th Symposium of the Companion Vector-Borne Diseases (CVBD) World Forum in 2020, ultimately to help veterinary team professionals understand the problem and the role they have in helping to prevent and manage vector-borne and other pathogens in relocated cats.

Keywords: Adoption; Animal welfare; Bacteria; Feline; Homing; Importation; Parasites; Prevention; Relocation; Shelter; Viruses; Zoonosis.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests. The authors are members of the CVBD World Forum. The CVBD World Forum was founded during the First International CVBD Symposium from April 18 to 20, 2006, in Billesley, UK, because of the increasing global threats through vector-borne diseases associated with companion animals. The CVBD World Forum is supported by Elanco Animal Health (formerly Bayer Animal Health). FDT is editor-in-chief of Parasites and Vectors, but the review of this article has been handled by Dr. Adnan Hodžić, the Subject Editor of the section Parasites of veterinary importance.

Figures

**Fig. 1**
Categorization of cat lifestyles [6], which exist as a spectrum (figure with courtesy of International Cat Care)

See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

1. Wright I, Jongejan F, Marcondes M, Peregrine A, Baneth G, Bourdeau P, et al. Parasites and vector-borne diseases disseminated by rehomed dogs. Parasit Vectors. 2020;13:546. - PMC - PubMed
1. Statista. Number of dogs and cats kept as pets worldwide in 2018. 2019. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1044386/dog-and-cat-pet-population-w.... Accessed 9 Aug 2021.
1. World Atlas. Most populous animals on earth. 2020. https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/most-populous-mammals-on-earth.html. Accessed 9 Aug 2021.
1. Cats Protection. Cats report UK 2021. 2021. https://www.cats.org.uk/media/10005/cats-2021-full-report.pdf. Accessed 18 Nov 2021.
1. International Cat Care. Cat friendly solutions for unowned cats. 2021. https://icatcare.org/unowned-cats/. Accessed 20 Apr 2021.

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Vector-borne and other pathogens of potential relevance disseminated by relocated cats

Affiliations

Vector-borne and other pathogens of potential relevance disseminated by relocated cats

Authors

Affiliations

Abstract

Conflict of interest statement

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References

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MeSH terms

Grants and funding

LinkOut - more resources

Full Text Sources

Miscellaneous