MRSP has spread clonally
in Europe and North America [5]. The predominant
European clone, ST71(MLST)-t02(spa)-II-III(SCCmec),
has been determined to be the principal MRSP clone in
Sweden [6] and has also been observed in Finland, where
it caused a large outbreak in a veterinary teaching hospital
[7]. Of other staphylococci, Staphylococcus aureus
is a common human pathogen, but is less prevalent in
dogs [8]. Nevertheless, methicillin resistant S. aureus
(MRSA), traditionally a nosocomial pathogen of humans,
is also found in dogs and can cause infections in them
[9]. MRSA may also be more readily transmitted between
dogs and owners than MRSP