Isolation of Sporothrix schenkii from the nails of healthy cats

Many cases of sporotrichosis in cats were diagnosed in the town of Rio Grande, RS, Brazil, caused mainly by inoculation due to scratches. In this work, we evaluated the frequency of Sporothrix schenckii in the nails of healthy cats living together with cats showing clinical sporotrichosis. The isolation of the fungus was carried out pressing unwashed nails of the forelimbs of 24 cats (48 paws) directly onto the surface of Mycobiotic Agar in Petri dishes. S. schenckii was isolated from seven (29.1%) cats. The procedure for isolation of the fungus was simpler than methods that require sedation and cuts of the nails.