Giardia – Zoonoses Fact Sheet

Giardia can be shared between animals and people, causing gut disease. Gastrointestinal diseases are a major problem in young children in Indigenous communities. In Western Australia, hospitalisation for gastroenteritis was 7 times higher in Aboriginal children than Non-Aboriginal children (Gracey and Cullinane 2003). Diarrheal episodes were associated with the presence of potential zoonotic pathogens such as Giardia spp. (Gunzburg et al 1992, Meloni et al 1993)