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Abstract
AIMS: To identify oocysts found in faecal material of a greyhound.
METHODS: Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and DNA sequencing were used to study genomic DNA isolated from oocysts purified from faeces of a greyhound.
RESULTS: Database searches with the DNA sequences obtained showed they were derived from Hammondia heydorni. A species-specific PCR was developed to detect H. heydorni DNA.
CONCLUSIONS: Light microscopy in conjunction with PCR and DNA sequencing definitively identified the presence of H. heydorni oocysts in faeces of a greyhound.
CLINICAL RELEVANCE: This study confirms the presence of H. heydorni in New Zealand and indicates the need to correctly identify similar oocysts from dogs, rather than assume they are Neospora caninum.