Toxocara canis

Veterinary and
zoonotic importance,
diagnosis and control

Professor Dennis Jacobs

The Royal Veterinary College
(University of London)
www.rvc.ac.uk
 Toxocara canis
veterinary importance
Very common in puppies
Heavy infections:
suboptimal growth-rates
or weight-loss
pot-belly (swollen abdomen)
diarrhoea/ vomiting
worms passed
Smaller worm burdens in
adult dogs
Toxocara canis
life-cycle
 T. canis: infection of
puppies
Spontaneous
L2
expulsion occurs
from 6 weeks old
T. canis: infection of
the bitch

Somatic larvae
waiting for:
pregnancy
 T. canis: infection of
non-canine (paratenic) hosts

Somatic larvae
Waiting for:
their host to be eaten
by another animal
 Basic epidemiological
cycle

Prenatal and
transmammary
transmission

Egg in Remember!
environment
Egg excretion in pups
starts between
2 and 3 weeks of age
 Patent
infections in
adult dogs
especially
nursing
bitches
 Paratenic
hosts

Significant for fox,

wolf, dingo etc
 Human
infection

Also a paratenic
host!
 Toxocara canis
public health importance

Visceral larva migrans

(VLM)

Ocular larva migrans

(OLM)

Occult toxocariasis
2.5% seropositive in United
Kingdom
 The key to the
epidemiology
of T.canis is ..
.. the egg in
environment
Control of Toxocara in dogs
Treatment objectives
Short term:
welfare of pups
Control of Toxocara in dogs
Treatment objectives
Short term:
X welfare of pups
X Longer term:
stop eggs getting
X X X into environment
X Reduces accumulation of
somatic larvae in bitch
Reduces risk of human
infection
Chemotherapeutic targets in puppies
What worms are we trying to kill?

Migrating
larvae
New adults appear soon
after treatment if larvae
not killed!

Adult worms
 Control of T.canis:
Piperazine
Widely used
Cheap, available from supermarkets etc.
Efficacy v adults: ~85%
Efficacy v larvae: NONE
Therefore, frequent doses needed
Treat at 2, 4, 6, 8 and 12 weeks of age
 Control of T.canis
Compounds that do not kill migrating larvae
do not eliminate egg-output
(as new adults quickly appear)
Therefore, they
perpetuate the hazard
for puppies and humans
 Control of T.canis:
Fenbendazole
In pups:
3 x 50 mg/kg
Efficacy v adults: ~100%
Efficacy v larvae: ~ 95%
Treat at 3 and 6 weeks of age
 Another chemotherapeutic target in
the bitch

Somatic larvae
X
killing these will
X protect pups
and reduce the future
output of eggs in the
environment
 Prevention of prenatal and
transmammary transmission

Only licensed treatment in UK is:

FENBENDAZOLE
25 mg/kg/day
daily from Day 40 of pregnancy
to 2 days post-partum
Don’t forget!
Treat nursing bitches
for adult worms

Hygiene important!
Note: eggs resistant to
disinfectants

Treat adult dogs at

least 2x per year
Another ascarid
worm in dogs -
Toxascaris
leonina
 Toxascaris leonina
is like T.canis except:
Infects: dogs and cats also bears etc

NO prenatal infection
NO transmission via milk
NO body migration
Most important routes of transmission:
embryonated eggs
eating ‘paratenic’ hosts (mice etc)

Zoonotic importance: probably little or none

Ascarid worms in cats:
Toxocara cati
Toxascaris leonina
 Toxocara cati
is like T.canis except:
Infects: cats and other felidae

NO prenatal infection

Most important routes of transmission:

via milk
by eating paratenic hosts (mice etc)

Zoonotic importance: uncertain

 Diagnosis

Toxascaris

Toxocara
Toxocara
Nematode eggs in dog faeces
Whipworm

Hookworm

Toxocara

Toxascaris
 Identifying ascarids
Dog Cat

T.canis T.leonina T.cati

 www.rvc.ac.uk

The end
Any questions?