SEROEPIDEMIOLOGICAL SURVEY OF SYMPATRIC DOMESTIC AND WILD DOGS (LYCAON-PICTUS) IN TSUMKWE DISTRICT, NORTH-EASTERN NAMIBIA

Disease is a potential threat to many endangered populations and may o riginate from sympatric domestic species. This paper describes a cross -sectional serological survey of canine pathogens carried out in domes tic (n = 70) and wild dogs (Lycoan pictus) (n = 6), in Tsumkwe Distric t, northeastern Namibia. Evidence of past exposure to canine distemper virus, canine adenovirus and parainfluenza virus was evident in both wild and domestic dogs with this, the first, documented exposure of fr ee-living wild dogs to canine distemper. Domestic dogs were also expos ed to rabies virus, canine parvovirus and coronavirus. There was no pa thogen to which wild dogs, but not domestic dogs, were exposed. With w ild dogs known to be susceptible to rabies and canine distemper, these may be the greatest threat to this population of wild dogs, although some wild dogs can clearly survive infection with canine distemper.