Haemato-biochemical and vitamin d status in dogs affected with demodicosis

Introduction

The dog (Canis lupus familiaris), a domesticated member of the family Canidae, is one of the most popular companion animals. However, dogs are highly prone to dermatological disorders due to constant exposure of the skin to environmental agents. These disorders not only compromise the cosmetic value of affected animals but also their general health. Among these, canine demodicosis is a major skin disease caused by the over-proliferation of Demodex mites, which are otherwise considered commensals of the canine cutaneous microflora. Demodex canis is the predominant etiological species, while D. injai and D. cornei are less frequently associated (Gortel et al., 2006) [1] . The mites inhabit hair follicles and sebaceous glands, feeding on sebum, keratinocytes and cellular debris. The pathogenesis of demodicosis is complex, involving immune dysregulation, cutaneous barrier rupture, inflammation and hypersensitivity reactions (Ferrer et al., 2014) [2] . T-cell exhaustion and altered cytokine signaling, particularly the immunosuppressive role of interleukin-10, have also been implicated (Esch et al., 2013) [3] . Canine demodicosis is diagnosed using skin scraping, trichography, acetate tape impression and occasionally PCR-based techniques for mite speciation (Muller et al., 2020; Zhao and Wu, 2012) [4,5] . The disease remains therapeutically challenging due to acaricide resistance and frequent recurrences (Paterson et al., 2009) [4] . Haemato-biochemical profiling can provide insights into the systemic impact of demodicosis. Previous studies have reported anaemia, leucocytosis, hypoalbuminemia, hyperglobulinemia and altered liver enzyme activities in affected dogs (Sakina et al., 2012; Kumar and Shekar, 2020; Salem et al., 2020) [6,7,16] . Vitamin D, a key modulator of immune function and skin barrier integrity, has recently gained attention as an adjunctive therapy in canine dermatological diseases (Klinger et al., 2018) [8] . The present study was undertaken to investigate haemato-biochemical changes and Vitamin D status in dogs naturally affected with demodicosis.

I.

Materials and Methods

Results and Discussion

The mean values of Hb, PCV and TEC were significantly lower in dogs suffering with demodicosis when compared with the healthy groups which is indicative of anemia in the affected group. Similar findings were observed by Sakina et al. (2012) [6] , Haleem et al. (2015) [9] , Katariya et al. (2018) [11] , Kumar and Shekar (2020) [7] , Kamalu (2022) [10] . There were no significant variations in MCV, MCH MCHC levels between dogs affected by demodicosis and those in the healthy control group. Anaemia in demodectic dogs may be due to stress arising from the disease, involving chronic inflammation, nutritional deficiencies and increased metabolic demand. Significant increase in leucocytes was observed. Thushara et al. (2016) [12] , Bhushal et al. (2025) [14] , Haleem et al. (2015) [9] , Kumar and Shekar (2020) [7] and Kamalu (2022) [10] The elevated leukocyte count observed in this study may be due to the host's inflammatory reaction to Demodex mite infestation, compounded by secondary bacterial infections and opportunistic pathogens. Additionally, immune system imbalance and physiological stress likely contributed to the increased leukocytic activity. Differential leucocyte count (DLC) analysis revealed significant increase in neutrophils and decrease in lymphocytes in dogs with demodicosis compared with healthy group and respectively. This indicates that dogs with demodicosis had neutrophilia and lymphopenia. Haleem et al. (2015) [9] , Bhushal et al. (2025) [14] and Reddy et al.

(2024) [15] also reported neutrophilia and lymphopenia in demodectic dogs. In the present study, Neutrophilia is commonly associated with acute or chronic inflammation and it likely results from the host's innate immune response to Demodex mite infestation and secondary bacterial infections. The observed lymphopenia may be attributed to immunosuppressive mechanisms, either due to the disease itself or therapeutic interventions.

The present study revealed significant biochemical alterations in dogs affected with canine demodicosis. There was notable hypoproteinaemia, hypoalbuminemia, hyperglobulinemia and a markedly reduced albumin: globulin (A: G) ratio when compared with healthy dogs. Similar to our study Thakur et al. (2020) [13] and Reddy et al. (2024) [15] were also reported hypoproteinaemia, hypoalbuminemia. This hypoproteinaemia, hypoalbuminemia may be due to protein catabolism resulting from chronic inflammation and trauma to the skin caused by multiplication of mites. Reddy et al. (2024) [15] , Salem et al. (2020) [16] , Sakin et al. (2012) [6] , Kumar and Shekhar (2020) [7] also reported reduced albumin level and elevated globulin concentration. This altered albumin and globulin concentration indicates immune dysregulation suggesting a compensatory response to demodicosis. In the present study, a non-significant elevation in ALT and normal creatinine levels were observed. A non-significant elevation in ALT was in consistent with Kumar and Shekar (2020) [7] and Salem et al. (2020) [16] who documented an elevated ALT levels suggestive of hepatic stress. Similarly, Salem et al. (2020) [16] reported stable renal parameters suggesting that renal function may remain largely unaffected in uncomplicated cases of canine demodicosis. In the present study 78. 5

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