6 Jul 2021
Hany Elsheikha
Job Title
Having companion pets can be enriching, and a source of happiness and comfort. However, along with the many benefits that companion pets bring to their owners comes a big responsibility.
Companion pets can carry a large number of infectious agents, including parasites. Although most of these pathogens do not pose a risk to humans, some can impose a real threat for human health – especially in individuals with a weakened immune system, the elderly and infants.
How do pet owners perceive parasitic infections, and how well do they cooperate with veterinary practitioners in the implementation of the prescribed treatment protocol? As someone with experience in parasitology research and practice, in addition to an interest in analysing the value of pharmaceuticals, the author has seen these questions give rise to many discussions on what constitutes an optimal parasite treatment and control regimen to protect both animal and human health, as well as the environment.
Innovative solutions that address companion pets’ needs, improve the interaction between pet owners and veterinary professionals, and proactively address pet owner concerns or misunderstandings will, in the author’s opinion, result in better animal health care and more effective parasite control strategies.
The important role of dogs and cats as companions in people’s lives is well established. Many health‑enhancing benefits for humans arise from such interactions – including improvements in mental, physical and social health (Krittanawong et al, 2020; Cryer et al, 2021).
However, the health of companion dogs and cats is closely linked with that of their owners – and they could share a risk of infection by the same parasites.
This close contact with dogs and cats – together with the increased travel to exotic areas; transportation of animals across countries and continents, carrying with them untoward zoonotic parasites; and the rapid socioeconomic and demographic changes in some societies – is increasing the spread of parasitic zoonoses from pet animals to humans and possibly vice versa (Macpherson, 2005; Cutler et al, 2010; O’Neil, 2018).
Parasitic zoonoses have gained increasing national and international attention in recent years due to their adverse impact on animal and human health. In general, all people are at risk of acquiring parasitic infections from pets. However, some vulnerable groups are at greater risk of infection from animal-borne zoonotic parasites, including pregnant women, newborns, immunosuppressed patients with various types of cancers, organ transplant recipients, AIDS patients, and patients undertaking a long course of treatment with immunosuppressive medications (Esch and Petersen, 2013).
A neglected or incorrect diagnosis, or delayed treatment of parasitic infection in these high-risk groups, could have detrimental health implications on infected individuals.
Substantial efforts and improvements in developing means for detection, treatment, and control of parasitic and other infectious diseases in pets and humans have been made in the past few decades. Despite this progress, infectious diseases remain a major threat to animal and human health in almost all corners of the world, and many parasites continue to infect dogs, cats and humans worldwide.
Many hurdles impede the delivery of efficient infection control programmes, including insufficient preparedness and unrealistic recognition of the size of the challenge that must be overcome to protect the health and prosperity of society.
The public health crisis caused by COVID-19 has made the global community more conscious of the risk of zoonotic or emerging infectious diseases of probable animal origin than ever (Haider et al, 2020; Mackenzie and Smith, 2020). Despite the distress caused by the pandemic, unprecedented collaboration between governments, research facilities and the pharmaceutical industry has resulted in the development and production of vaccines in an incredibly short time.
This example of successful cooperation could lead to more public-private partnerships to develop better means for the control of infections.
The role played by animal health professionals is crucial to protecting the health and safety of animals and humans. However, many hurdles remain to be tackled – including the limited understanding of pet owners’ attitudes to, perceptions of and knowledge about parasites and antiparasitic treatment.
Adopting a one health approach – by promoting interdisciplinary collaboration, and fostering cooperation between veterinary professionals and pet owners to tackle these challenges – is more important than ever.
More concerted effort from animal health care professionals and pet owners is needed to overcome these obstacles, which will reduce the spread and risk of parasites and, therefore, improve the health and welfare of animals and protect the public health.
Engaging with pet owners is one of the most important things we should be investing time in as a profession.
These days, pet owners have an abundance of veterinary practices to choose from – and if a pet owner has a bad experience at your practice that goes unresolved, he or she will most likely choose another practice.
Similarly, if the owners are not satisfied with the treatment outcome, they will simply look for another product or treatment approach online.
Even if the majority of your clients are satisfied with your services, some unhappy pet owners will always exist.
Ineffective communication with pet owners, and overlooking their expectations of the treatment, can be significant barriers to veterinary professionals delivering proper health care to a pet – and can even create tension between practitioners and pet owners.
According to the BVA’s 2017 Voice of the Veterinary Profession Survey, 85% of veterinarians reported either they or a team member had felt intimidated by a client’s language or behaviour. Treatment cost was one of the most common reasons for this threatening behaviour, with 98% of vets having admitted feeling under pressure from clients to waive fees or accept late payment.
These unhelpful interactions between pet owners and animal health care professionals do not need to exist at all if more effort was made to understand pet owners’ concerns, and to set clear expectations of treatment cost and outcome.
Veterinary professionals should consider offering pet owners choices regarding the most effective and affordable treatments. They should understand their clients’ preferences and aim to meet their expectations – the impact this has on treatment outcome, and their relationships with pet owners, will soon become evident.
Pet owners need to understand that veterinary practices offer good value for money, as fees not only cover professional consultation, health care and treatment, but the team’s time and expertise, equipment used and the overheads of running the practice itself.
Progress happens when people and businesses bravely and innovatively adopt new ways of thinking and working. Moving forward, veterinary practices can make more progress, building on their established links with their client base, by adopting some of the following tactics.
Time advances – and the succession from one generation to the next – is a natural part of the human story. Logically, each generation will have unique characteristics.
Being different is not necessarily a bad thing – and although differences may cause some challenges, they definitely bring new opportunities to both the veterinary industry and pet owners.
Managing pet owners’ perceptions of parasitic infections is one of the most important things that veterinary professionals should be doing and is the responsibility of every single person in veterinary practice.
Pet owners’ perceptions should not be taken for granted because it is fragile, and can easily and quickly change; therefore, constantly maintaining a good pet owner experience is of the utmost importance.
Veterinary professionals should also proactively address unwarranted pet owner concerns or misunderstandings.
Given their spending power, millennial pet owners deserve the attention of your veterinary practice. Do not take a traditional “one size fits all” advertising approach as it may not “fit” the new generation. Combining authenticity and technology can be a captivating way to gain the loyalty of this large population of pet owners.
Although each generation has unique preferences – which vary based on gender, age and life experiences – all owners want a trusted and reliable vet-client relationship, to be involved in treatment decisions and receive high‑quality treatment from their veterinarians.
Finally, research studies are needed to survey people whose pets have received antiparasitic treatment, question their preferences and expectations, and discover the extent to which these were met.
