Ixodid ticks collected at the Faculty of Veterinary Science, Onderstepoort, from dogs diagnosed with Babesia canis infection.

In an attempt to identify the vectors of Babesia canis, ticks were collected over a period of 3 years from a total of 395 dogs diagnosed as infected with this protozoan parasite at the Veterinary Faculty, Onderstepoort. Haemaphysalis leachi was the only tick species recovered from 164 of these dogs, and it occurred in mixed infestation on a further 140 of the dogs. Rhipicephalus sanguineus was collected in pure infestation from 59 dogs with a further 87 harbouring mixed infestations. Sixteen dogs harboured only Rhipicephalus simus and 58 others carried this tick in mixed infestations. Because the incubation period of B. canis is thought to be longer than the time most ixodid ticks spend on their hosts, no conclusion can be made on the vector status of any of the tick species. However, the majority of dogs diagnosed with clinical canine babesiosis at Onderstepoort were concurrently infested with H. leachi.