Abstract More than 30 dog parasite species have been identified in Bosnia and Herzegovina so far, and half of these are zoonotic. The aim of the study was to investigate the occurrence of parasitic infections in dogs from Bosnian-podrinje canton with a focus on zoonotic parasites. The study included 212 dogs (107 owned and 105 stray). One or more of the twenty parasite species were found in 82.55% of tested samples. Dicrocoelium dendriticum (Class Trematoda) was found in 0.94% of dogs. Dipylidium caninum and Mesocestoides lineatus (Class Cestoda) were found in 7.55% and 0.94% of dogs, respectively. Taenia spp. and Echinococcus spp. (Family Taeniidae) were found in 0.47% and 0.94% of samples, respectively. In the family of Nematoda, the following parasite species were identified with corresponding percent among tested dogs: Toxocara canis (25.94%), Toxascaris leonine (8.96%), Strongyloides stercoralis (0.47%), Ancylostoma caninum (3.77%), Uncinaria stenocephala (52.36%), Trichuris vulpis (22.17%), Eucoleus aerophilus (1.42%), Dirofilaria immitis (1.89%) and Dirofilaria repens (1.42%). In the kingdom of Protozoa, the following parasite species were identified with corresponding percent among tested dogs: Cystoisospora canis (8.49%), C. ohioensis (2.36%), Cryptosporidium spp. (4.72%), Sarcocystis spp. (0.47%), Babesia spp. (5.19%), and Giardia duodenalis (15.57%). Leishmania infantum was not identified in tested samples. The results showed a high level of parasitic infestation in the dog population in the Bosnian-Podrinje canton, with a high occurrence of zoonotic parasites. Significant differences were found between owned and stray dogs for all classes of detected parasites with exception of the class Trematoda, disregarding specific parasite species.

Reptiles, especially turtles, are becoming increasingly popular as pets. The haematological evaluation of turtles is an irreplaceable diagnostic tool in veterinary practice. However, the morphologic distinctiveness of turtle blood limits the use of electronic cell-counting devices, making time-consuming, manual counting techniques and evaluation of blood smears necessary. Many samples are dispatched to a laboratory over long distances, where a delay of 24 h or more may occur. At weekends, this interval may exceed 48 h. The objective of the present study was to determine the effect of storage duration at refrigerator temperature (4 °C) on the counts of red blood cells (RBC) and white blood cells (WBC), and on the mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and packed cell volume (PCV) in blood samples from healthy adult red-eared sliders. Blood samples were collected by venipuncture from the occipital venous sinus from six apparently healthy adult red-eared sliders, aged 2 to 4 years. Blood samples were analysed immediately after sampling to obtain the baseline value (BV) of the red blood cell count, white blood cell count and packed cell volume percentage. Blood was stored at 4 °C and the haematological analyses were performed after 24h, 48h and 72h. The results showed the same level of stability for RBC and WBC count, and MCV values during 72 hours of storage at 4 °C and for PCV during 48 hours. Handling of blood samples, and duration of storage of the blood samples can significantly influence the results/values of haematological tests. Consequently, the obtained values of the determined haematological parameters of improperly stored or handled blood samples can give a misleading interpretation of the results on the animal’s health status.