Toxocara canis is the most common parasitic worm found in dogs. This species of roundworm can be transmitted to people by contact with contaminated feces or soil.
Do all dogs have Toxocara?
Toxocara canis is a roundworm which primarily affects dogs. Although it doesn't commonly cause disease in adult dogs, symptoms can be severe in young puppies. More importantly, Toxocara Canis can infest humans as an intermediate host, causing several different syndromes.
How common is Toxocara canis?
Approximately 5% of the U.S. population has antibodies to Toxocara. This suggests that tens of millions of Americans may have been exposed to the Toxocara parasite.
How do dogs get Toxocara?
In puppies, the usual mode of infection with T canis is transplacental transfer. If pups <3. mo old ingest embryonated infective eggs, the hatched larvae penetrate the intestinal mucosa, reach the lungs via the liver and bloodstream, are coughed up, swallowed, and mature to egg-producing adults in the small intestine.
What is the most common parasite found in dogs?
Roundworms are the most common of the parasitic worms found inside a dog. Almost all dogs become infected with them at some time in their lives, usually as puppies.
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