Why is Giardia testing important?

Giardia is a protozoan parasite of worldwide distribution that infects most mammals and causes significant gastrointestinal disease. Giardia is found in soil, food, water, or surfaces that have been contaminated by infected humans or animals.

• A recent national study determined the prevalence of Giardia in symptomatic dogs to be 19% and 11% in cats.¹

• Giardia is a health concern for both animals and people.

Prevalence
"The prevalence of Giardia is high, even when giardiasis often goes undetected. Reasons for this occurrence may include failure to consider it in the differential diagnosis, failure to recognize the organism, use of inappropriate methods for fecal analysis and intermittent excretion of organism in feces of infected animals."

Greene C. Infectious Diseases of the Dog and Cat.
Philadelphia, Pa: WB Saunders, 1998.

    A Quick Course—
    Giardia in Dogs and Cats: More Common than You Think (89 KB)

Greene C. Infectious Diseases of the Dog and Cat.
Philadelphia, Pa: WB Saunders, 1998.

Clinical Signs

• Acute small-bowel diarrhea is the most common clinical sign. Small-bowel diarrhea is characterized by liquid to semi-formed feces, a moderately increased frequency of defecation and normal to increased fecal quantity.
• Giardia infections may accompany inflammatory bowel disease.

Treatment

• Common treatments include metronidazole, fenbendazole or albendazole.

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