Emergence of A Novel Disease Caused by Staphylococcus
Pseudintermedius in Raccoon Dogs (Nyctereutes procyonoides)
Yisong Zhu#, Hongmei Li#, Kaiyan
Guo#, Ziqiang Cheng, Faxiao Liu, Yuqing Zhao, Huijun
Guo*, Jianhua Qiu *
Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Biotechnology and Disease Control
and Prevention; College of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine,
Agricultural University, Tai‘an, 271018, .
Abstract This study reports outbreak of a new disease caused byStaphylococcus Pseudintermedius in Raccoon dogs. The disease
occurred in a breeding farm of raccoon dogs in Guan County of Shandong
Province in in August of 2019. 47% (425/896) of raccoon dogs showed the
abnormal symptoms; 17.6% (75/425) of them had sever skin and soft
tissue infections(SSTIs), dyspnea and sever pathological lesions in
lungs, hearts, livers, kidneys, etc; 4.2% (18/425) were dead in 4
weeks. The pathogen of the disease was identified asStaphylococcus pseudintermedius by mass spectrometer detection,
microscopic examination and biochemical reaction test. Its nucleotide
homology of 16SrDNA was 100% with thats of other published strains and
its genotype was between American strain and Brazilian strain from other
animal species. The isolated Staphylococcus pseudointermediatestrain from the diseased raccoon dogs could cause ulceration and
suppuration in the skins and sever pathological lesions in some organs
of the infected mice, and it is confirmed as a methicillin-resistantStaphylococcus pseudintermedius (MRSP) strain by the
amplification of mecA gene; and 12 sensitive drugs were screened
by drug sensitivity test. Full attention should be paid to the great
economic loss and the potential zoonotic risk caused by theStaphylococcus pseudintermedius in raccoon dogs, and this study
can provide a reference for the clinical diagnosis and treatment of this
new disease.
Keywords: Raccoon dog; Staphylococcus pseudintermedius ; Skin and
soft tissue infections; Zoonotic pathogen; Methicillin-resistant