Occurrence and impact of zoonoses in pet dogs and cats at US Air Force bases.

A descriptive epidemiologic study was conducted to quantitate the occurrence of zoonoses in pet animals (almost exclusively dogs and cats) at 30 Air Force bases in nine regions of the United States during 1980 and 1981. Reviews of reported cases of pet-associated zoonoses in humans at these bases were included. Occurrence of a zoonotic disease in dogs and cats was expressed as a ratio of reported cases per 100 rabies vaccinations (cs/Crv). Overall, the four zoonoses reported most frequently from these pets were hookworms, roundworms, tapeworms, and fleas. Annual ratios revealed geographic variations: for example, hookworms in dogs and cats in the southeast ranged from 12.3 to 9.4 cs/Crv; in the northern Great Plains, hookworms ranged from 0.9 to 0.4 cs/Crv. Dermatomycoses in the southeast ranged from 1.3 to 1.1 cs/Crv, and in Alaska from 0.3 to 0.2 cs/Crv. Quarterly zoonoses occurrence revealed seasonal variations in several regions. Reports of zoonoses in people from these bases indicated that five less frequent zoonoses in dogs and cats (Microsporum canis dermatomycosis, fleas, Sarcoptes scabiei var canis, Gram-positive bacterial infections, and rabies) presented greater acute threats to humans than did the four most frequent zoonoses reported from their pets.