Investigation on Toxocara spp. eggs in hair coat of dogs in YSR Kadapa district of Andhra Pradesh, India

Present study was aimed to record the Toxocara spp. eggs in dog’s hair and to analyze the incidence in breed and age wise along with incidence variations in the anatomical locations of hair over the body. Dogs presented to the hospital were screened for enteric parasitic ova and hair samples were collected from the different body regions including head and neck region, ventral and lateral abdomen, perianal and hindquarters and tail region. Out of the 236 dogs, 124 (52.54%) dogs showed Toxocara spp. eggs in the faecal samples and 60 (25.42%) showed the presence of Toxocara spp. eggs on their hair. It was noticed that the dogs with long hair showed (36.73%) more incidence than the short hair breeds (17.39%). The incidence of the Toxocara spp. eggs were varied with the presence of the hair at different anatomical locations and it was 36.67% in the head and neck region, 51.67% ventral and lateral abdomen, 86.67% in perianal and hindquarters, 56.67% in the tail region. 25.35% of the dogs were under 1-year-old, 25.98% dogs were between 1 and 6 years old and 23.68% dogs were more than 6 years had the Toxocara spp. eggs in their hairs. In conclusion, the presences of Toxocara spp. eggs in the hair of different breeds of dogs were recorded in the present geographical location and it is a zoonotic alert for the pet owners.