Seroprevalences of Rickettsia conorii, Ehrlichia canis and Coxiella burnetii in Dogs from Montenegro

Purpose The incidence of vector-borne zoonoses has been increasing in Europe as a result of global climate change, and rickettsioses are a significant etiologic entity among these infections. The objective of this study was to investigate the seroprevalences of Rickettsia conorii , Ehrlichia canis and Coxiella burnetii in dogs in Montenegro. Methods The seroepidemiological study covered 259 dogs, of which 155 were owned dogs suspected of infection with agents of rickettsial aetiology from the continental (Podgorica) or five coastal municipalities of Montenegro (Budva, Herceg Novi, Kotor, Ulcinj and Bar), and 104 dogs were from a public shelter in Podgorica. The presence of specific IgG antibodies against R . conorii was analysed using a commercial indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test, and the presence of antibodies against E . canis and C. burnetii was analysed using commercial indirect immunofluorescence tests (IFAT). Results Seroprevalences of 73.36, 19.3 and 1.16% were determined for R. conorii , E. canis and C. burnetii , respectively. R. conorii was significantly more prevalent ( χ 2 = 14.53; p