CoChat
Sign Up
Cited by 201Helminth infection and controlParasitic infections in humans and animalsParasites and Host Interactions

Observations on the development of Toxocara canis(Werner, 1782) in the dog

Sprent, J. F. A.·1958·Parasitology
DOI 10.1017/s0031182000021168
Open this paper in CoChat — free account

Abstract

1. Evidence from previous literature shows that puppies are commonly infected with larvae of Toxocara canis at birth and that prenatal infection can be produced by feeding embryonated eggs to pregnant bitches. 2. Observations on fifty-eight dogs in Brisbane showed that all of twenty-nine puppies 1–6 months old were infected, while only three out of twenty-nine dogs over 6 months old were infected. 3. In naturally infected puppies, 1–3 weeks old, it was found that at birth third-stage larvae were present in the lungs. Third-stage larvae continued to appear in the lungs for the first week of life; their length was 0·6–1·3 mm. 4. Third-stage larvae were found in the stomach on the day after birth; at 3 days after birth fourth-stage larvae were found in the intestine. 5. It appeared likely that the second moult occurs in puppies before birth, and that the third moult takes place at a length of 1·0–1·3 mm. in the lungs and stomach within the first week of life. 6. By the beginning of the second week, fourth-stage larvae were fully grown and had commenced the fourth moult at a length of 5–7 mm. 7. Throughout the second and third weeks, adults grew rapidly, reaching a length of about 67 mm. by the end of the third week, but no eggs had appeared in the faeces at this time. 8. Experimental infection of mice with eggs showed that the larvae were distributed to the somatic tissues, few reaching the alimentary tract. The larvae did not progress beyond the second stage in the tissues of mice. 9. Experimental infection of dogs with eggs showed that in dogs over 5 weeks old the larvae were distributed to the somatic tissues and did not reach the alimentary tract. The larvae did not progress beyond the second stage, though some of them showed signs of commencing the second moult. In contrast, 1 to 3-week-old puppies infected in the same way were found to harbour larvae in the alimentary tract. Though some of these larvae were probably derived from a naturally acquired prenatal infection, it was evident from the progress of development that the experimental infection resulted in the presence of second-stage larvae in the liver and lungs and that these larvae underwent the second moult, commenced development as third-stage larvae in the lungs, migrated into the stomach and developed to the adult stage in the intestine. 10. Experimental infection of dogs and foxes with mice harbouring second-stage larvae in the tissues showed that, in some instances, development of larvae proceeded in the alimentary tract. No evidence of somatic migration was found in dogs infected in this way, but in foxes second-stage larvae were found in the lungs. 11. The structure and development of the second, third and fourth stage is described in detail and found to resemble closely the development of T. cati larvae (Sprent, 1956). Second-stage larvae from dog tissues had a length of 0·34–0·44 mm. and the second moult occurred at a length of 0·37–0·44 mm. Third-stage larvae varied in length from 0·46 to 1·36 mm., and the third moult occurred at a length of 0·98–1·3 mm. Fourth-stage larvae measured 1·2–6·3 mm., though moulting fourth-stage larvae were observed up to a length of 7·4 mm. Sexual differentiation occurred during the fourth stage and was evident at a length of about 1·5 mm. 12. The migratory behaviour of the larvae of T. canis and T. cati is compared and discussed in relation to their wide range of hosts. It is concluded that differences in migratory behaviour are adaptations to prevailing modes of nutrition and it is suggested that the somatic migration occurring in dogs is an adaptation to the non-predatory habits of this particular host.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1017/s0031182000021168

Cites

25 of 25 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Recomputing p-values needs the paper’s full text.

Claims the paper makes

This paper’s full text isn’t openly available, so its claims and self-check weren’t run. The registry and citation checks still apply.

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Related

Authors
Sprent, J. F. A.
Affiliations
The University of Queensland (AU)
Corresponding author
Sprent, J. F. A.
Venue
Parasitology
Publisher
Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Published
1958-05
Volume
48
Issue
1-2
Pages
184-209
ISSN
  • 0031-1820 (ISSN-L)
  • 1469-8161
DOI
10.1017/s0031182000021168
OpenAlex
W2121254095
Cited by
201
References
25
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 7 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 1 · 2016: 4 · 2015: 4 · 2014: 4 · 2013: 4 · 2012: 5
FWCI
10.88
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
www.cambridge.org/core/terms (unspecified, 18603 d)
Locations
  • Parasitology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Veterinary › Small Animals › Helminth infection and control
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pathology and Forensic Medicine › Parasitic infections in humans and animals
  • Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Parasitology › Parasites and Host Interactions
Keywords
Toxocara canis, toxocariasis, canine toxocariasis, larval development, prenatal infection, puppies, third-stage larvae, fourth-stage larvae, larval moulting, experimental infection, embryonated eggs, lung, stomach, intestine, dogs, foxes, mice, larval migration
MeSH terms
Animals, Dogs, Humans, Infections, Toxocara, Toxocariasis, Toxocara canis

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review