Abstract
An investigation was made on the effects of Toxocara canis in "abnormal" hosts. Hosts used in this study were white mice, Mus musculus Linnaeus; Mexican ground squirrels, Citellus mexlcanus Erxleben; golden hamsters, Mesocricetus auratus Waterhouse; the common opossum, Dldelphis marsupialis Linnaeus; guinea pigs, Cavia porcellus Linnaeus; domestic pigeons, Columba livia Gmelin; yellow bull-head catfish, Ictalurus natalis LeSueur; the warmouth, Chaenobryttus qulosus Cuvier; three-toed amphiumas, Amphiuma tridactylum Cuvier; and nightcrawlers, which were identified as Eudrilus eugeniae Kinberg. Time intervals used in this study were 2 days in fish and amphiumas; 10 days in pigeons, guinea pigs, and opossums; 14 days in hamsters; and 30 days in mice, ground squirrels, and earthworms. Observations were made on migration, distribution, sex differences, age differences, susceptibility to infection, paratenic and "intermediate" host relationships, and growth of larvae. Results showed the organs most heavily infected were the liver, lungs, brain, and kidneys. Larval migration was somatic in all hosts examined with the exception of mice which showed some tracheal migration. Infection was not established in amphiumas and fish. Sex and age differences in relation to infectibility occurred in some hosts studied but not in others. Some hosts were found to be more susceptible to infection than others while specific organs in specific hosts harbored more larvae than the same organs in other hosts. Growth of larvae in the tissues was found to occur « in some hosts but not others..
Henson, Richard Nelson (1970). Migration and distribution of the dog ascarid Toxocara canis (Werner, 1782) in abnormal hosts with special reference to age and sex resistance and to paratenesis. Doctoral dissertation, Texas A&M University. Texas A&M University. Libraries. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /DISSERTATIONS -178317.