Top dogs can catch things too!  Our NEW dog show panel checks for 8 pathogens potentially transmissible at dog shows.

 Neuro symptoms getting on your nerves? Try our canine neurological panel - 6 neurological pathogens from 1 CSF sample; or our feline neurological panel - 5 neurological pathogens from 1 CSF sample.

Oh baby! Try our canine breeding PCR panel - 3 canine sexually transmitted diseases tested from swabs or semen samples.

Respiratory symptoms got you breathless? Try our canine respiratory PCR panel - we test for 8 canine respiratory pathogens from throat, nasal and eye swabs.

...or maybe you need our feline respiratory PCR panel -- 6 feline respiratory pathogens from throat, nasal and eye swabs.

Diarrhea got you on the run? Try our canine diarrhea PCR panel -- 8 major diarrheagenic agents from 1 fecal specimen...
...OR our 9-pathogen feline diarrhea PCR panel.

Not feeling sanguine about bloodborne pathogens in cats? Try our feline bloodborne PCR panel -- 4 major bloodborne pathogens from 1 blood sample.

Ticks bugging you? Try our tickborne disease PCR panel -- 7 major tickborne pathogens from 1 blood sample.

Just plain sick and tired? Try our canine anemia PCR panel or our feline anemia PCR panel -- detect and differentiate multiple anemia pathogens from 1 blood sample.

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Zoologix performs canine and feline PCR tests for...

Anaplasma phagocytophilum

Anaplasma platys

Aspergillus species

Aspergillus fumigatus

Babesia

Bartonella

Baylisascaris procyonis

Bordetella bronchiseptica

Borrelia burgdorferi

Brucella canis

Campylobacter

Canine adenovirus type 1

Canine adenovirus type 2

Canine circovirus

Canine enteric coronavirus (CCV1)

Canine distemper

Canine herpesvirus

Canine papillomavirus

Canine parainfluenza virus

Canine parvovirus

Canine pneumovirus

Canine respiratory coronavirus (CCV2)

Chagas disease

Chikungunya virus

Chlamydophila psittaci

Clostridium species

Coccidia

Cryptococcus

Cryptosporidium

Cytauxzoon felis

Demodex gatoi mites

E. coli

Ehrlichia

Entamoeba

Fading kitten syndrome

Feline calicivirus

Feline distemper

Feline enteric coronavirus

Feline foamy virus

Feline herpesvirus type 1

Feline immunodeficiency virus

Feline infectious anemia

Feline infectious peritonitis

Feline leukemia

Feline panleukopenia

Feline papillomavirus

Feline pneunomitis

Feline rhinotracheitis virus

Feline sarcoma virus

Feline syncytial virus

Francisella tularensis

Giardia

Group G strep

Haemobartonella canis

Haemobartonella felis

Helicobacter

Influenza type A

Lawsonia intracellularis

Leishmania

Leptospira

Lyme disease

Mange in cats

Microsporum

MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staph aureus)

Mycoplasma canis

Mycoplasma cynos

Mycoplasma felis

Mycoplasma haemocanis

Mycoplasma haemofelis

Neorickettsia helmintheca

Neospora caninum

Pasteurella multocida

Pneumocystis carinii

Rabies

RD114

Reovirus screen

Rickettsia screen

Ringworm

Salmonella

Salmon poisoning disease

Sarcocystis neurona

Streptococcus, Group G

Streptococcus pneumoniae

Streptococcus pyogenes

Streptococcus zooepidemicus

Toxoplasma gondii

Trichomonas/
Tritrichomonas

Trichophyton

Trypanosoma cruzi

Tularemia

West Nile virus

Yersinia pestis

Yersinia pseudotuberculosis


Zoologix canine and feline PCR testing

Why use PCR to detect infectious diseases of dogs and cats?

Molecular testing using PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) has revolutionized the way veterinarians, researchers, zoos, breeders and other animal care facilities maintain animal health and obtain disease data.

The sensitivity, specificity and speed with which pathogens and mutations are identified by PCR enable diagnostic, research and monitoring possibilities unavailable using other techniques. Molecular techniques represent a dramatically effective tool for the diagnosis of disease in dogs, cats and other animals.

In PCR testing, nucleic acid -- DNA or RNA -- is isolated from a specimen, then amplified (after an extra reverse transcription step in the case of RNA) using highly specific primers complementary to known target sequences. Positive and negative controls are run simultaneously; internal controls monitor extraction and PCR efficiency. Each sample is run in duplicate aliquots to check repeatability. Amplification is visualized and recorded using state-of-the-art protocols and instrumentation.

When should samples be collected?
Many pathogens shed intermittently. Therefore, it is usually best to collect samples when an animal is symptomatic. Often pathogen titers spike early in a bout of symptoms, so ideally samples should be collected early in a bout of symptoms, and/or when symptoms are worst. It is possible for treatments to reduce symptoms and shedding temporarily but not entirely clear the infection. If treatment (such as an antibiotic) was administered, typically you should wait at least a week following the end of treatment before collecting a sample for testing.

How is molecular, PCR-based testing complementary to other kinds of testing?

  • Cross-reactivity reduces the specificity of many serological tests: a positive result can be caused by organisms other than the target. PCR tests, on the other hand, are highly specific because they detect genetic sequence unique to the target pathogen. Even closely related pathogen strains can often be distinguished.
  • The influence of some sources of false positives is reduced in PCR testing, because while other testing methods detect antibodies to pathogens which may not still be present, PCR tests detect the genetic material of the pathogen itself -- a direct indication of presence of the pathogen in the sample.
  • Infections can often be identified by PCR very early in a bout of symptoms. Detection is not dependent on elevated antibody levels, which may take days or weeks to occur.
  • Animals with high titres of some viruses can actually exhibit very low antibody levels as their immune systems are challenged by an infection. This can result in false negative diagnoses if antibody testing alone is used.
  • PCR's exquisite sensitivity allows detection of a target pathogen in a sample even if present in very low titres, and even from very small sample volumes.
  • Many different sample types are appropriate for PCR testing - not just serum.  Check our assay datasheets for any test's sample requirements.

About Zoologix
Since 2004, Zoologix has served animal care professionals with PCR diagnostic testing for infectious diseases that affect dogs, cats and other animal species. Other testing facilities perform PCR testing as a sideline. Because we specialize in PCR testing for infectious diseases of animals, our lab staff are adept at performing protocols designed to maintain specimen integrity and maximize assay specificity and sensitivity. We provide fast turnaround and competitive pricing in each of our assay categories.

As an independent, dedicated diagnostic laboratory not affiliated with any clinic or corporate conglomerate, Zoologix is free of incentives to bias results. Zoologix is owned and managed by board-certified scientists and seasoned laboratory managers with extensive experience in molecular biology, biochemistry, zoology, assay design, quality assurance and lab operations. Our objective is to provide to the veterinary, animal care, breeder and research communities the fastest, highest quality molecular infectious disease testing available.

Client samples are stored at our lab for six months to facilitate any followup testing.

Contact information
Zoologix is headquartered in Westlake Village, in southern California. We are located in the Conejo Valley biotech hub, near two major airports (LA International and Burbank), UCLA, USC, CalTech and other regional research centers.

ZOOLOGIX
725 Lakefield Rd, Suite H
Westlake Village  CA  91361
USA
1-818-717-8880

info@zoologix.com

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