Contamination of the hair of owned dogs with the eggs of Toxocara spp.

Abstract

Please cite this article as: Keegan, J.D., Holland, C.V., ontamination of the hair of owned dogs with the eggs of Toxocara spp., Veterinary Parasitology (2008Parasitology ( ), doi:10.1016Parasitology ( /j.vetpar.2010 This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. Abstract: 25Toxocara canis is one of the most common gastrointestinal helminthes of dogs. Humans can 26 become infected through ingestion of infective eggs, Infection often causes few symptoms but in 27 rare cases blindness can occur. It is generally accepted that human infection is caused as a result 28 of direct contact with contaminated soil. However, recently, the eggs of Toxocara spp. have been 29found in the hair of dogs, implicating them as a possible additional route of transmission. The 30 aim of this study was to assess the extent to which the hair of owned dogs was contaminated 31 with the eggs of Toxocara. Samples were taken from the head, neck, back and anus of 184 dogs. 32Eggs were recovered from the hair using a previously standardised detection method. Eggs were 33 found on the hair of 8.8% of the sampled dogs. None of the eggs found were embryonated. 34There was no significant difference found between the numbers or prevalence of eggs taken 35 from the head, neck, back and anus. Older dogs were significantly more likely to possess eggs on 36 their hair than those under one year of age. The low prevalence and the lack of potentially 37 infective embryonated eggs suggests that direct contact with well cared for owned dogs poses a 38 low risk of infection with T. canis.

Zoonotic parasites in feces and fur of stray and private dogs from Italy

“…None of the eggs found on the coat of the positive animals was viable, probably a result of UV-light and/or lack of humidity (Overgaauw et al 2009). This result fits with the low percentage of embryonated roundworm eggs found in similar studies carried out in the Netherlands and in the UK (Overgaauw et al 2009;Keegan and Holland 2010). This work reports, for the first time, the presence of T. vulpis eggs on the coat of a dog (Table 1), but the significance of this finding is unclear pending that the zoonotic potential of the dog whipworm is clarified.…”

“…With regard to the two trichuroids here found, the role of T. vulpis as a zoonotic agent is still unclear (Traversa 2011), while C. aerophila is capable of inducing, though rarely, the human lung capillariosis, characterized by fever, bronchitis, cough, hemoptysis, dyspnea, and which can mimic the symptoms of a bronchial carcinoma (Lalosević et al 2008). The percentage of animals whose coat resulted contaminated by parasite eggs is lower than the number expected based on previous works (Wolfe and Wright 2003;Roddie et al 2008;Aydenizöz-Ozkayhan et al 2008;Overgaauw et al 2009;Keegan and Holland 2010). None of the eggs found on the coat of the positive animals was viable, probably a result of UV-light and/or lack of humidity (Overgaauw et al 2009).…”

Presence of Toxocara eggs on the hair of dogs and cats

“…It is reported that age is not related with the contamination of Toxocara eggs of the hair (29,30,36) or in other words the eggs on the hair can be seen in all age groups but it is more common in less than one year old (2,4,14,20). The result of the present study suggest that puppies are more likely to harbour eggs on their hair than young and adult.…”

“…Recent studies have found embryonated T. canis eggs on the hair of dogs which suggested that direct contact with dogs may be important risk factor (4,14,20,28,36). Regarding Toxocara spp.…”

“…In addition, infection can also occur following ingestion of partial or whole paratenic host, such as raw livers of domestic animals and following ingestion of contaminated raw vegetables or fruits (23,33). Direct contact with dogs and cats that harbour a patent Toxocara infection is usually not considered a risk, because the eggs need to mature 3-6 weeks before they are infective (10,20,28). An alternative mode of transmission recently proposed is contact with embryonated eggs on a dog's hair in recent studies (2,4,30,36).…”