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Abstract

Between September and December of 2011 fecal samples of one hundred and sixteen (116) dogs were examined to determine if they were had patent Toxocara canis infections. Fiftyeight (58) of these candidates came from The Hague, where there is an abundance of foxes, and fiftyeight (58) from in and around the city of Utrecht, where much fewer foxes have been sighted. These two locations were chosen to see if foxes played a role in the continuous occurence of Toxocara canis infections in the dogpopulation. To support this assumption the prevalence of another parasite, namely Angiostrongylus vasorum¸was also actively sought for in the same fecal samples. There is as yet no endemic spread of A. vasorum within the dogpopulation in The Netherlands but has often been found in foxes. During the three months of this research four (4) dogs, two (2) from each location, were found to have a patent T. canis infection, but none (0) were positive for A. vasorum. With these results the assumption that the fox plays a role in the continuous occurence T. canis in the dogpoulation can neither be proven nor disproven.