14) infectious enteritis in dogs and cats

Question 1

Canine parvoviral enteritis (CPV)

Answer 1

Aetiology & incidence
• Very severe debilitating disease
➢ Severity depends on: age, breed, immune system, stress, virulence, other intestinal pathogens
• Typically, in young unvaccinated puppies
• Can occur in previously vaccinated animals
• Highly contagious, faecal-oral route
- Pathophysiology
• Targets and destroys rapidly dividing cells (intestinal lining, bone marrow)
• 90% mortality rate without treatment
• 80% survival rate with aggressive management
• Resilient viruses, persist in the environment for up to 8 months
- Clinical findings
• 6 weeks – 6 months (mostly)
• Kennels, shelters
• Lack of vacation
• Susceptible breeds: Staff Terrier, Labrador
• Severe diarrhoea: profuse, bloody, fetid
➢ Vomiting, anorexia, fever, lethargic, dehydration
• Sepsis, endotoxemia, DIC, sudden death
• +/- icterus
- Diagnosis
• History and clinical signs
• Laboratory tests
➢ Neutropenia (85%)
➢ Anaemia, K+ ↓, blood glucose ↓, total protein ↓
• Abdominal ultrasonography
➢ Intussusception, paralytic ileus?
• Faecal analysis
➢ Concurrent infection? → Giardia, Coccidia?
• Definite diagnosis
➢ Faecal ELISA (PCR)
➢ BUT virus shedding for 5 – 7 days after symptoms then test can be negative!
- Treatment
• Isolation
• Supportive therapy: keep warm and quiet
• Aggressive fluid therapy
➢ Correction of perfusion and dehydration deficits and electrolyte abnormalities
• Antibiotics – IV
➢ Wide spectrum
➢ Recommended to reduce the risk of bacterial translocation from the gastrointestinal tract
➢ E.g. cephalothin and metronidazole
• Gastric protectants
➢ Ranitidine, sucralfate, proton pump inhibitors
• Antiemetics
➢ Metoclopramide, maropitant
• Enteral feeding
➢ Important, start if anorexic > 2 days
➢ Micro-enteral feeding with electrolyte solutions via tube feeding (naso-oesophageal tubes) then progress to food
➢ Syringe feeding, intestinal diet
• Analgesics – opiates if needed
• Concurrent infections: bacteria, parasites, protozoa
• Complications: paralytic ileus, intussusception, sepsis from IV catheter
• Hyperimmune serum therapy → early stage, prevention
• Interferon omega may be useful

Question 2

Feline parvoviral enteritis (FPV) = Feline panleukopenia

Answer 2

• Distinct from CPV-2
• Highly contagious, high mortality
• Clinical findings
  • Acute (peracute, subacute)
  • Anorexia, fever, depression, dehydration
  • Vomiting, haemorrhagic diarrhoea
  • Thickened, painful intestinal loops
  • +/- oral ulceration; icterus in subacute form
  • Neutropenia → endotoxaemia, septicaemia,
  • Virus shedding: 1 – 2 days
• Diagnosis, treatment
  • See above CPV

Question 3

Canine coronaviral enteritis (CCoV; CPCoV)

Answer 3

- CCoV
• Kennels, shelters (outbreaks)
• Clinical signs – acute, mild
➢ Watery-mucoid diarrhoea
➢ No fever, no leukopenia
➢ Can even be asymptomatic
• Diagnosis: Faecal PCR
- Pantropic CoV
• Mutation → severe form
No further info about this on the lecture or the MiniVet Guide, internet was not helpful either

Question 4

Other viral enteropathies of cats (FCoV/FECV, FIP, FIV, FeLV)

Answer 4

- Feline coronavirus (FCoV)
• Feline enteral coronavirus (FECV)
➢ Subclinical, mild
➢ Acute: watery diarrhoea in kittens
• Mutations: feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) → death
- Felina immunodeficiency virus (FIV)
• Usually: FIV + secondary infections → enteritis
• Chronic diarrhoea, anorexia
- Feline leukaemia virus (FeLV)
• Fatal peracute enterocolitis
• Chronic diarrhoea

Question 5

bacterical enteritis

Answer 5

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Question 6

bacterial entiritis

Answer 6

▪ Campylobacteriosis
▪ Salmonellosis
▪ Miscellaneous bacterial enteritis
▪ Enteropathogenic E. coli
▪ Clostridium perfringens, Clostridium difficile (see large intestinal diseases)
▪ Yersiniosis (see large intestinal diseases
▪ Aetiology
▪ Young
▪ Overcrowded
▪ Concurrent diseases
▪ Immunosuppressed
▪ Raw meat diet
▪ Severity of illness depends on
➢ Pathogenicity
➢ Gut / defence mechanisms (mucosa, microbiota, local immune system)
➢ General immune system
▪ Diarrhoea may be absent to soft, watery, mucoid to bloody (usually acute)
▪ Common zoonosis, BUT main sources for humans: food / nosocomial
▪ Diagnosis
▪ Difficult (pathogen ↔ non-pathogen)
▪ Campylobacter: PCR > culture
▪ Clostridium: PCR + ELISA for toxin
▪ Treatment
▪ Mild
➢ DO NOT treat with antibiotics
o Resistance
o Prolonged shedding
▪ Severe
➢ Isolate and treat
o Clarithro- / erythromycin
o Enrofloxacin
▪ In sepsis or in risk of sepsis → IV antibiotics IMMEDIATELY
➢ Amox/clav + enrofloxacin/gentamycin

Question 7

fungal enteritis

Answer 7

Histoplasmosis