Strains of Taenia taeniaeformis were shown to possess markedly differing infectivities for Sprague-Dawley rats and CFI mice. Strains from Scotland, Belgium and Iraq were more infective for mice than rats while this situation was reversed with a Malaysian strain. There were also differences in their ability to infect hosts of different ages within the range 3-12 weeks of age.
The parasites which occurred most frequently in 175 owned or stray dogs in Sabah were Ancylostoma spp. present in 68% of the animals. Dirofilaria immitis occurred in 70% of the adult dogs but neither D. immitis nor Spirocerca lupi were present in puppies under four months of age. The latter attained a prevalence of 30% in the adults. In contrast Toxocara canis occurred in 81% of the puppies but infrequently in older dogs. Dipylidium caninum was moderately prevalent (15 to 25%) in dogs of all ages. Ticks were the most common arthropod parasite being present on 26% of the dogs and were mainly Rhipicephalus sanguineus. Demodectic and sarcoptic mange were confirmed and fleas and lice were also recovered.