Veterinary Parasitology 206 (2014) 227–231 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Veterinary Parasitology jo u r nal homep age: www.elsevier.com/locate/vetpar Comparison of Toxocara eggs in hair and faecal samples from owned dogs and cats collected in Ankara, Turkey Hatice Öge a,∗ , Semih Öge a , Gökben Özbakıs ¸ a , Safa Gürcan b a Ankara University, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Parasitology, 06110 Ankara, Turkey b Ankara University, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Biostatistic, 06110 Ankara, Turkey a r t i c l e i n f o Article history: Received 16 May 2014 Received in revised form 2 October 2014 Accepted 4 October 2014 Keywords: Toxocara canis Toxocara cati Diagnoses Zoonoses Owned dog–cat Hair–faeces a b s t r a c t This study was undertaken to determine the prevalence of Toxocara eggs on hair and in fae- ces of healthy owned cats and dogs and to make comparisons between data (sex, age, host factor, etc.) collected from dogs and cats. Toxocara eggs were found on the hair of 14% of 100 dogs and 22% of 100 cats. In total, 58 and 136 eggs were recovered from the hair samples of examined cats and dogs, respectively. Of the total number of eggs, 2 were classified as embryonated in cats. One of the eggs recovered was embryonating in dogs. The maximum number of eggs was found in the tail bottom of cats (28 eggs) and dogs (58 eggs). As well as finding Toxocara eggs in dogs and cats hair, we also found eggs of some helminthic par- asites; such as Dicrocoelium sp., Fasciola sp., Taenia sp., Dipylidium caninum and Toxascaris leonina. In addition, faecal samples of same dogs and cats were also examined by two tech- niques (centrifugal flotation and sedimentation): Toxocara eggs were found in 5% and 13% of dogs and cats faeces, respectively. But, 14% of the dogs and 22% of the cats were positive for Toxocara eggs on hair. The prevalence of eggs in faecal samples was lower than those detected from hair samples (P < 0.05). Two techniques for recovering Toxocara eggs from faecal samples were tested for efficiency and suitability for routine use. The results were expressed as the percentage rate of recovery of Toxocara eggs in positive faecal samples. The recovery rate was better with the method of sedimentation than with the method of flotation (P < 0.05). This study indicates that dogs and cats without internal infections were shown to have eggs on their hair and so uninfected animals also pose a threat in terms of the eggs present on their hair, albeit a small risk. © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Toxocara canis and Toxocara cati are common round- worm parasites of dogs and cats, respectively. They are cosmopolitan species and are also zoonotic parasites, and cause visceral larva migrans (Overgaauw, 1997a; Taylor et al., 2007; Bowman, 2009). The infection in humans occurs primarily as a result of the ingestion of infective eggs (Macpherson, 2013). Infection can also occur ingestion of ∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +90 312 317 03 15/4387. E-mail address: hoge@ankara.edu.tr (H. Öge). arrested infective larvae in paratenic host, and ingestion of contaminated raw vegetables or fruits (Smith et al., 2009; Lee et al., 2010). Risk factors for infection in humans include geophagia (especially in children), low socio-economic level, breeding dogs, and failure to regularly pick up and dispose of faeces or empty cat litter trays (Robertson and Thompson, 2002). Soil and sandpits contamination (while playing outdoor) can cause of toxocariasis in chil- dren (Overgaauw, 1997a; Oge and Oge, 2000; Macpherson, 2005; Bowman, 2009). An alternative model of transmis- sion is ingestion of eggs containing infective larvae on dog’s hair (Wolfe and Wright, 2003; Aydenizöz-Özkayhan et al., 2008; Roddie et al., 2008b; Amaral et al., 2010). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.vetpar.2014.10.005 0304-4017/© 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.