Absence of zoonotic Bartonella species in questing ticks: First detection of Bartonella clarridgeiae and Rickettsia felis in cat fleas in the Netherlands

Table 3 Pathogens found in fleas from pets

	*C. canis*	*C. felis*
Total (number)	48	528
Pools (size)	17 (1-7)	204 (1-17)
B. henselae-positive (pools)	0	32
B. clarridgeiae-positive (pools)	0	3
R. felis-positive (pools)	1	43

Ctenocephalides canis and C. felis fleas were separated based on morphological markers and were pooled per animal and flea species. In several cases more than one pool per animal was taken. Fleas were analysed by PCR and sequencing for the presence or absence of DNA from Bartonella and Rickettsia species.

ISSN: 1756-3305