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Background. In the last fifteen years on the European continent and also worldwide, the prevalence of cardiopulmonary metastrongyloidosis in dogs and cats has increased significantly, especially cases involving those parasites which are the most important for veterinary practice (Angiostrongylus vasorum, Aelurostrongylus abstrusus and Crenosoma vulpis). Scope and Approach. The aim of this study is to present a detailed clinical-parasitological approach to highlight the importance of these helminths, and to display the newest findings concerning the diagnostic possibilities in dogs and cats Key Findings and Conclusions. The effects of global warming, vector range shift, the frequent transportation and movement of animals to other epizootic areas, as well as the intensification of merchandise transportation and movement of people are just some of the potential factors which could impact the dynamics of incidence, upkeep and spread of cardiopulmonary nematodoses in carnivores. For the timely implementation of effective treatment of sick animals, it essential to accurately diagnose these parasitoses. Accurate, timely diagnosis can, in the end, significantly contribute to the prognostic course of disease in infected carnivores. Cardiopulmonary metastrongyloidoses in dogs and cats have great clinical-parasitological significance because of their high degree of pathogenicity, their spread outside endemic areas, the difficulties encountered in establishing their diagnosis, and the fact that they represent a potential danger to human health. [Project of the Serbian ministry of education, science and technological development]

Introduction: The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence of respiratory capillariosis in red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in some regions of Serbia.

Respiratory capillariasis is a disease of domestic and wild carnivores as well as of people, caused by nematode Eucoleus aerophilus syn. Capillaria aerophila, which lives as a parasite in mucosa of trachea, bronchi and bronchioles, rarely in nasal and frontal sinuses of the host. This parasite has either direct or indirect development cycle which includes optional transition hosts - earthworms. Clinical picture is manifested in the form of a very severe respiratory disease, which is accompanied by an increased bronchovesicular sound, sneezing, gasping and chronic dry cough. Despite the fact that this nematode is widespread in all the parts of the world, that it causes a disease followed by a severe clinical picture and has a zoonotic potential as well, it has been insufficiently investigated and moreover from clinical and parasitological aspect it has not been given enough attention so far. The reason for this is the fact that C. aerophila had been considered to be a strain of very low level of pathogenicity causing only sporadic respiratory infections in dogs and cats. The interest of scientific community for this parasitosis increased the moment when its causative agent spread outside the endemic areas. From the standpoint of monitoring and health protection of both carnivores and peorle, knowledge of basic epizootiological and epidemiological characteristics of these nematodes is of crucial importance, having in mind that its prevalence has significantly increased in dogs and cats in the last ten years, both in Europe and worldwide.

The paper presents the most important parasitic infections of wild rabbits and hares, which harmful effect in this animal population is manifested as a gradual weakening of the immune system, reduction in fertility, weight loss and constant exhaustion. Order of Lagomorpha (hares or lagomorphs) belongs to superorder of higher mammals which includes the family of rabbits (Leporidae) which are represented in Europe as well as the family of whistleblowers (Ochotonidae) which live only in North America and Northern regions of Asia. The most important representatives of Leporidae family are European hare (Lepus europeus) and wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus). The most important endoparasitosis of hares and wild rabbits are: coccidiosis, encephalitozoonosis (nosemosis), toxoplasmosis, sarcocystosis, giardiasis, cryptosporidiosis, protostrongylosis, trichostrngylodosis, passalurosis, anoplocephalidosis, cysticercosis and fasciolosis. The most frequent ectoparasites of rabbits and wild hares are fleas, lice and ticks. Reduction in hare population, which is noticed in whole Europe including Serbia, is caused by changed living conditions, quantitatively and qualitatively insufficient nutrition, increased use of herbicides as well as various infectious diseases and the diseases of parasitic etiology. Since wild rabbits and hares pose a threat to health of domestic rabbits and people, knowledge of parasitic fauna of these wild animals is of extreme epizootiological and epidemiological importance.

Populations of wildfowl have been categorised taxonomically into five families: Phasianidae, Tetraonidae, Scolopacidae, Otidae and Anatidae. They are of particular importance for agriculture, forestry and the game economy, and certain species also have an important role in the epizootiology of parasitic infections in domestic fowl and fish. That is why it is extremely important for the process of promoting the system of animal health protection to have knowledge regarding the etiology and epizootiology of parasitic infections in wildfowl. Diseases in wildfowl caused by protozoa are histomoniasis, trichomoniasis, malaria, coccidiosis, cryptosporidiosis, sarcocystosis, toxoplasmosis, and giardiasis. The most represented helminthiases in wildfowl are singamosis, capillariasis, trichostrongyliasis, ascaridiosis, heteraciosis, nematodosis of the glandular stomach, cestodoses and trematodoses. The most significant ectoparasites in wildfowl are mites, ticks, and fleas. The reduction of populations of certain widlfowl species in nature could present a major problem, having in mind the important role of these birds in ecosystems and biocenosis. The incidence, maintaining and spreading of parasitic infections among widlfowl are just some of the factors that affect the numbers of their populations.

Because of indirect and direct damages, parasitic infections of cattle pose a threat to animals, so it is necessary to suppress them continuously. In order to carry out the action successfully, it is of crucial importance to deal with current data on their presence. The investigation was carried out in the region of North Bačka District during 2009. and 2010., in 224 heads of cattle grown at farms of various hygienic status and housing conditions. In this study, there are presented the results relating to helminthosis and mange prevalence in different age categories of cattle. Positive parasitological findings were determined in 43.30% of tested animals. There were diagnosed cestodes of Moniezia and Dicrocoelium dendriticum strain, gastro intestinal strongilides as well as mites of Psoroptes strain. During two years’ investigation, there was found out the greatest prevalence of infections caused by gastro intestinal strongilides (19.78% and 29.32%). On the basis of the obtained results, it will be possible to use modern antihelmintics more effectively, as well as to implement measures in order to prevent both growth and survival of preparasitic stadiums in the environment and animal infection. The ultimate goal is to help providing more economical cattle production in the investigated region. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. TR31084: Praćenje zdravstvenog stanja divljači i uvođenje novih biotehnoloških postupaka u detekciji zaraznih i zoonoznih agenasa - analiza rizika za zdravlje ljudi, domaćih i divljih životinja i kontaminaciju životne sredine i br. 173001: Primena EIIP/ISM bioinformatičke platforme u otkrivanju novih terapeutskih targeta i potencijalnih terapeutskih molekula]

The family of wild canids belongs to the order Carnivora and comprises 16 genuses that are distributed in most countries all over the world. The most important endoparasitic diseases of wild canids are toxocariasis, uncinariasis, capillariasis, trichinellosis, echinococcosis, cestodiasis, opisthorchiasis, and alariasis. Ectoparasites that most often exist as parasites in wild canids are mites, fleas, ticks and scabies.Wild canids have a large epizootiological-epidemiological significance since they are hosts to parasites that cause certain vector diseases, the most important of which are leishmaniasis, ehrilichiosis, babesiasis, borreliosis, dirofilariasis, bartonellosis, and hepatozoonosis. The increased frequency of interaction between domestic and wild canids steps up the risk of the appearance, spread, and maintaining of the disease in domestic dog populations. Observed from the aspect of the biological and ecological risk, that can be caused by zoonotic infections, the knowledge of the etiology and epizootiology of parasistic infections of wild canids is of particular importance for the region of the Republic of Serbia. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. TR31084: Praćenje zdravstvenog stanja divljači i uvođenje novih biotehnoloških postupaka u detekciji zaraznih i zoonoznih agenasa - analiza rizika za zdravlje ljudi, domaćih i divljih životinja i kontaminaciju životne sredine i br. 173001: Primena EIIP/ISM bioinformatičke platforme u otkrivanju novih terapeutskih targeta i potencijalnih terapeutskih molekula]

This paper presents the results of two-year investigations of parasitic infections of the digestive tract of dogs originating from the territories of eight municipalities of Braničevo District. Investigations were performed on 345 dogs of different breeds and age categories, originating from rural and urban environments. The investigations encompassed dogs bred in decent hygiene conditions, as well as dogs living in unhygienic conditions. Some of the dogs covered by these analyses were dewormed, but the bulk of the sampled material originated from dogs that were not treated with antihelminthics. Eight species of parasites of the digestive tract were diagnosed in the examined dogs from the territory of the Braničevo District: Toxocara canis, Ancylostoma caninum, Uncinaria stenocephala, Trichuris vulpis, coccidiae, Dipylidium caninum, Taenia spp. and Alaria alata. Today, it is still necessary to keep dogs in rural environments and isolated areas, since these animals are used to guard real estate and cattle. For quite some time now, there has also been wide-spread interest in keeping dogs in urban areas as well. It is evident on the grounds of data from big towns that the number of dogs in urban environments has been increasing constantly all over the world. However, the conditions for naturally maintaining dogs in towns have become increasingly more difficult and complicated. The amount of free space and the number of yards are constantly being reduced, so that dog owners are compelled to keep their pets in apartments. These altered living and diet conditions have resulted in more complex and varied health problems of dogs.

Wild ruminants and wild boar belong to the order Artiodactyla, the suborders Ruminantia and Nonruminantia and are classified as wild animals for big game hunting, whose breeding presents a very important branch of the hunting economy. Diseases caused by protozoa are rarely found in wild ruminants in nature. Causes of coccidiosis, cryptosporidiosis, toxoplasmosis, sarcocystiosis, giardiasis, babesiosis, and theileriosis have been diagnosed in deer. The most significant helminthoses in wild ruminants are fasciosis, dicrocoeliasis, paramphistomosis, fascioloidosis, cysticercosis, anoplocephalidosis, coenurosis, echinococcosis, pulmonary strongyloidiasis, parasitic gastroenteritis, strongyloidiasis and trichuriasis, with certain differences in the extent of prevalence of infection with certain species. The most frequent ectoparasitoses in wild deer and doe are diseases caused by ticks, mites, scabies mites, and hypoderma. The most represented endoparasitoses in wild boar throughout the world are coccidiosis, balantidiasis, metastrongyloidiasis, verminous gastritis, ascariasis, macracanthorhynchosis, trichinelosis, trichuriasis, cystecercosis, echinococcosis, and less frequently, there are also fasciolosis and dicrocoeliasis. The predominant ectoparasitoses in wild boar are ticks and scabies mites. Knowledge of the etiology and epizootiology of parasitic infections in wild ruminants and wild boar is of extreme importance for the process of promoting the health protection system for animals and humans, in particular when taking into account the biological and ecological hazard posed by zoonotic infections.

Economic, social and expert-scientific factors determine activities in connection with the development of the control of parasitic infections in the upcoming period of the 21st century. The primary research activities are directed at studies of the physiological functions of parasites and the ecological relations between the parasite and the host, and all that is undertaken with the objective of securing adequate pharmacotherapy/pharmacoprophylaxis and immunoprophilaxis. As there is a huge expansion in the synthesis of chemical compounds, there is a great number of potential substances for use in the form of a medicine. Along these lines, activities concerning the development of new antiparasitics and/or modification of existing ones are primarily based on securing a quality target spot for its action. Another possibility in the area of research is connected to the problem of resistance of parasites and intensive studies of the biochemical-physiological characteristics of parasites, as well as the development of an active epidemiological-episootiological network for monitoring resistance. In parallel with the development of medicines, the results of investigations of physiological functions of parasites and their mutual relations with their host, are intensely used for the development of immunological control, and the development of vaccines (for example, the development of vaccines for the control of coccidiosis, babesiosis, echinococcosis). The second important approach is related to studies of parasitic zoonoses, the effect of global warming on the epidemiological-episootiological characteristics of parasitic diseases and the selection of resistant animal breeds/hybrids. Animal welfare is also of importance, the perfecting of reliable, rapid and less-costly methods for diagnosing parasitic diseases and the development of in vitro methods for the examination of resistance to antiparasitics.

Coccidiosis is the most significant parasitic disease in poultry in contemporary systems of breeding and utilization of their production potentials. It usually inflicts substantial economic damage, regardless of whether it is exhibited in the clinical or subclinical form. In parallel with the industrialization in poultry breeding, measures for the control of coccidiosis have developed in parallel, so that the prevention of this disease today is founded on four basic principles: zoohygiene, genetics, the implementation of anticoccidial drugs, and vaccination. Hemoprophylaxis is the most represented in the prevention of coccidiosis, as a very efficient measure. In Serbia, ionoform antibiotics, amprolium, halofuginone and sulfonamides, are most often used. However, the application of medicines in coccidiosis control has as a consequence also certain undesired effects, of which the most important are toxicity, incompatibility with other drugs or chemical substances, coccidia resistence, and the presence of residue in poultry tissue. The significance of the immunization of poultry with the objective of their protection from the harmful consequences caused by this protozoozis has been known for several decades now. The implementation of a vaccine against coccidiosis has established its practical importance in the world only in the past decade, when the European Union Commission adopted a five-year plan for studies of coccidiosis and its control through vaccination. In our country, two vaccines have been registered for use in veterinary medicine, and their practical implementation has still not quite become regular practice. Each of the listed control measures also implies certain faults, however. More efficient protection can be provided by possible combinations of the coccidiosis control methods.

Neospora caninum is an obligate intracellular protozoan parasite which primarily causes diseases in dogs and cattle all over the world. It was first described in Norway in the mid-eighties in dogs, after which, until the present time, clinical neosporosis was proven in sheep, goats, deer, rhinoceroses, horses, and experimental rodents. Antibodies against N. caninum have been found also in the serum of water buffalo, red and gray foxes, coyotes, camels, and felines. Due to the similarity of this Coccidia with Toxoplasma gondi, the neosporosis was for a series of years incorrectly diagnozed as toxoplasmosis. Domestic canines, dogs, are the only real host for N. caninum. Its life cycle covers three stages of development: tachyzoites, tissue cysts and oocysts. Carnivores are infected by ingesting parts of infected tissue which contain tissue cysts with bradyzoites. The dominant pathway of transmission of this cause in cattle is transplacentary infection, but cattle can also be infected by ingestion of feed or water contaminated by sporulated oo-cysts of N. caninum. Bitches can be subclinical carriers of the parasite, when they pass on the cause transplacentarily, which results in more than one litter being born with the infection. Neosporosis today appears as the main cause of abortions and neonatal deaths in dairy cows and fattening cattle in almost all parts of the world, but with the highest incidence in the United States (US), New Zealand, The Netherlands, and Germany. The treatment of this disease has not been fully determined, but medicines used for the treatment of toxoplasmosis have yielded certain good results. There is no verified vaccine that would prevent undesired abortions in cattle. .

Parasitic helminthoses in domestic animals are triggered by causes originating from the classes: Trematoda (fiatworms), Cestoda (tapeworms) and Nematoda (roundworms), which are in most cases endoparasites. The big presence of different parasitoses in our country are a result of the geographic position and the climatic conditions of certain areas, large agglomerations of cattle in certain localities, an unsatisfactory level of zoohygienic conditions in cattle facilities and on pastures, a diet that is inadequate both in quality and in quantity, a low hygiene level of the diet and watering, limited areas for grazing and their poor quality, extensive maintend diet of the animals, the presence of corresponding vectors or transitory hosts, s a low professional and cultural level of cattle farmers. The prevention of parasitic infections and the fight against their causes implies the severing of the chain of the parasite's biological cycle during one of the stages of its development. That is why it is necessary to destroy the most sensitive ones and the most available development forms of the parasite. Under the conditions when the epizootiological situation in the field is changing unexpectedly, it is necessary to apply the adequate therapeutic methods and prophylaxis in veterinary medicine, and to conduct an organized and planned fight against parasitic infections.

The biggest number of parasitic diseases in our country are caused by helminths. The causes of these diseases differ among each other according to biomorphological characteristics, which consequently accounts for the different nature of the disease that they cause. In order to approach the curbing and treatment of these diseases in animals, it is necessary to make a precise etiological diagnosis. A correct and timely diagnosis secures insight into the episootiological situation concerning the existing parasitic diseases in the studied field. Moreover, it enables an estimate of the health condition of animals, which determines the quality of the production process in cattle breeding. Coprological diagnostic methods are among the direct diagnostic methods and are of great practical importance in diagnosing parasitic diseases, because they are based on the finding of the immediate causes (parasites) in any stage of development. These methods are mostly applied for diagnosis of helminthoses, since the biggest number of helminths is localized in the digestive tract and the communicating organs, which is why their eggs and larvae are eliminated into the outer environment through the feces of the diseased animals.