RAPID COMMUNICATION Brucella canis infection in dogs from commercial breeding kennels in Brazil L. B. Keid 1 | D. P. Chiebao 2 | M. C. A. Batinga 2 | T. Faita 1 | J. A. Diniz 2 | T. M. F. de S. Oliveira 1 | H. L. Ferreira 1 | R. M. Soares 2 1 Departamento de Medicina Veterin aria, Faculdade de Zootecnia e Engenharia de Alimentos, Universidade de S~ ao Paulo, Pirassununga, SP, Brazil 2 Departamento de Medicina Veterin aria Preventiva e Sa ude Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterin aria e Zootecnia, Universidade de S~ ao Paulo, Pirassununga, SP, Brazil Correspondence L. B. Keid, Departamento de Medicina Veterin aria, Faculdade de Zootecnia e Engenharia de Alimentos, Universidade de S~ ao Paulo, Pirassununga, SP, Brazil. Email: larakeid@usp.br Funding Information Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cient  ıfico e Tecnol  ogico; National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) Summary Canine brucellosis caused by Brucella canis is a neglected zoonosis worldwide and is a leading cause of reproductive failure in dogs, often causing substantial economic losses in breeding kennels. This study aimed to investigate the occurrence of B. canis infection in dogs of commercial breeding kennels located in S~ ao Paulo State, Brazil. A total of 753 dogs (183 males and 570 females) from 38 commercial ken- nels were clinically examined, and blood samples were collected for brucellosis diag- nosis through blood culture. The association between clinical manifestations suggestive of brucellosis and positive results through blood culture was determined. Of the 753 dogs tested, 166 (22.0%) had at least one clinical sign suggestive of bru- cellosis and 158 (20.9%) had positive blood cultures. Seventy-two dogs had positive blood culture and had at least one clinical sign suggestive of brucellosis, while 91 dogs showed at least one clinical manifestation suggestive of brucellosis although blood culture was negative. Of the 38 kennels, 16 (42.1%) had at least one positive dog. The prevalence of infection in each kennel varied from 3.8% to 62.6%. Abor- tion/stillbirth, failure to conceive and enlargement of lymph nodes were significantly associated with brucellosis in female. No association of clinical signs and positive results in blood culture was observed in males. None of the kennels has been carry- ing out programmes to control brucellosis, and the sale of infected dogs was consid- ered a common practice yielding risks to the public health, in view of the zoonotic potential of the infection. KEYWORDS blood culture, Brucella canis, brucellosis, dogs, kennels 1 | INTRODUCTION Canine brucellosis caused by Brucella canis is a neglected zoonosis worldwide distributed (Holst et al., 2012), being considered the main cause of reproductive failures in dogs, and economic losses to breed- ing kennels (Gyuranecz et al., 2011; Hofer et al., 2012; Holst et al., 2012; Jones & Emerson, 1984; Pickerill & Carmichael, 1972). The infection has been evidenced in Brazil mainly through serological surveys with frequencies varying from 0.8% to 44.5% (Cavalcanti et al., 2006; Dorneles et al., 2011; Dreer et al., 2013; Fernandes et al., 2011, 2013; Malek dos Reis, Hoffmann, Santos, Turri, & Ori- ani, 2008; Mascolli et al., 2016; Silva et al., 2012; Vasconcelos et al., 2008). However, few reports of the infection in dogs were based on bacteriological evidence (Keid, Soares, Morais, Richtzenhain, & Vas- concellos, 2004; Larsson & Costa, 1980; Mascolli et al., 2016). There is no vaccine available to prevent infection, so the identifi- cation and segregation of affected animals is the primary measure to control brucellosis in a confined population (Makloski, 2011; Pickerill Received: 12 September 2016 DOI: 10.1111/tbed.12632 Transbound Emerg Dis. 2017;1–7. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/tbed © 2017 Blackwell Verlag GmbH | 1