This beta-haemolytic Lancefield group G gram-positive bacterium is considered part of the commensal mucosal flora of the oral cavity, upper respiratory tract, genital organs and perianal region in cats. The infection seems to be sporadic in single-cat households, especially in older cats (Greene and Prescott, 2012).
In cats, invasive sarcomas (mostly fibrosarcomas), so called “feline injection-site sarcomas” (FISS), are the most serious adverse effects following vaccination. They develop at sites of vaccination or injection. They have characteristics that are distinct from those of fibrosarcomas in other areas and behave more aggressively.
Cowpox virus has a wide host spectrum including man (zoonosis!) and occurs predominantly in small rodents.
Cats with rodent contact are at risk to become infected.
Skin lesions are predominantly found on the head and paws.
Synopsis
In shelter situations, infectious diseases are difficult to prevent and control, thus, they spread quickly (Möstl et al., 2013). In addition, shelters are unstable biological environments;
Leptospires are mobile, thin, filamentous bacteria of a size of 6.0-25.0 mm length and 0.1-0.2 mm width, that appear as fine spirals often with hook-shaped ends (Fig. 1) (Bharti et al., 2003; Adler and de la Pena Moctezuma, 2010).
In contrast to single-celled yeasts, dermatophytes (literally: “skin plants”) are complex fungi growing as hyphae and forming a mycelium. Almost 40 species belonging to the genera Microsporum, Trichophyton and Epidermophyton are considered as dermatophytes.
Aspergillosis is a sporadic mycosis that occurs worldwide in mammals and birds. Similar to the disease in humans, aspergillosis in cats can be classified by anatomic location, invasiveness, duration of infection, host immune status, pathology, and pathogenesis.
Feline cryptococcosis is caused by basidiomycetous yeasts of the genus Cryptococcus belonging to the C. neoformans-C.
The pathogenic role of many Bartonella spp. as pathogens of humans and domestic animals is still unknown. Bartonella henselae is the causative agent of cat scratch disease (CSD) in humans, a self-limiting regional lymphadenopathy and cats are its main reservoir host.
Tritrichomonas foetus is a protozoan organism that can cause predominantly large intestinal diarrhoea in cats. It is specific to cats, distinct from other Tritrichomonas species and not considered to be zoonotic. Infection is most common in young cats from multicat households, particularly pedigree breeding catteries.
Giardia is a protozoal parasite that infects the small intestine of cats and can cause diarrhoea. The biotypes considered as feline specific biotypes do not appear to infect humans, but zoonotic biotypes (isolated from human cases) are frequently found in cats.
Toxoplasma gondii infection is common in cats, but the clinical picture is rare. Up to 50% of cats, especially free-roaming ones, have antibodies indicating infection and the presence of cystic stages. Clinical signs usually appear when cats become immunosuppressed – in these situations, cystic stages can be reactivated.
After malaria and lymphatic filariasis, leishmaniosis is the third most important vector-borne disease in people;
Babesiosis is a tick-borne protozoal disease affecting domestic and wild animals and humans worldwide. Babesiosis is caused by parasites of the genus Babesia belonging to protozoan piroplasms (Alvarado-Rybak et al., 2016).
Capnocytophaga canimorsus and C. cynodegmi are part of the normal bacterial flora in the oral cavity of dogs and cats; C. canimorsus is more pathogenic and causes more severe infections in humans.
The natural hosts of ADV are domestic and wild suids. The clinical signs in these animals include respiratory, reproductive and neurological signs, depending on the age of the animal. Like other herpesviruses, ADV produces a latent infection in the host.
Papillomaviruses cause cutaneous lesions in man and several animal species, including cats (Munday, 2010). In each host different papillomavirus types exist, which is also true for cats (Munday, 2008).
Pasteurella multocida, a gram-negative, facultative anaerobic, non-spore-forming pleomorphic coccobacillus, is a commensal bacterium and part of the natural flora in the nasopharynx and upper respiratory tract of the cat (Freshwater, 2008;
Coxiella burnetii is a Gram-negative, obligate intracellular, small, pleomorphic bacterium belonging to the order Legionellales. This organism has a complicated life cycle with different morphological stadia. It may occur as a small-cell variant and a large-cell variant.
The plague is currently endemic in many parts of the world and foci of plague occur in Asia, Africa and the Americas in semiarid areas where flea vectors are active all year round and rodent reservoirs are abundant (Valles et al., 2020).
Currently most of human cases occur in