ASSESSING THE ANIMAL SHELTER ENVIRONMENT FOR THE PRESENCE OF STREPTOCOCCUS ZOOEPIDEMICUS

Abstract

Streptococcus zooepidemicus is an emerging pathogen within animal shelters across the United States. As it can cause mild to severe respiratory infections including fatal hemorrhagic pneumonia in canines, it is of growing concern within the veterinary and public health communities. As numerous outbreaks across many states have only occurred within the last few years, little to no research has been conducted to determine if this pathogen is thriving within the shelter environment and reinfecting susceptible immunocompromised canines. The aim of this study was to assess the animal shelter environment for the presence of S. zooepidemicus. Environmental samples were collected from Pima Animal Care Center (PACC), DNA extracted, the 16S rRNA gene (912 bp) for identification of general Streptococcus species and the sodA gene (235 bp) specific to Streptococcus equi subspecies were amplified, and visualized on a gel using ultraviolet (UV) light. Only 2/150 (1.3%) of samples tested in this study were PCR positive for S. zooepidemicus, but 57/150 (38.0%) were positive for Streptococcus spp. However, the results of this study could not definitively conclude if live bacterial colonies of S. zooepidemicus are persisting in the shelter environment as a possible source of infection for outbreaks.