Your dog will almost certainly get worms in its gut at some point. This is a sad fact about having a pet. Even worse, intestinal worms often go unnoticed and undiagnosed because symptoms don’t always show up. If you don’t treat your dog, he or she could get very sick, and you could also get sick. Here are some items you need to know about intestinal worms in your dog.
How do dogs and puppies become infected with intestinal worms?
Worms can get into dogs even if they are well taken care of. Here are some ways that your pet can get sick.
From their mother.
Roundworms and hookworms can move through the uterus and get into the mother’s milk, where they can be passed on to unborn puppies and young puppies. Because this is a common way for roundworms to get into puppies, it is very important to talk to your vet about worming puppies.
Consumption of contaminated soil.
Because roundworms, hookworms, and whipworms live in the dog’s gut and lay their eggs in the poop, contaminated soil is another major source of these infections. It can take up to a month for the larvae to start moving, and the eggs can be dangerous for years, so the feces that contaminated the soil are often not found. Most of the time, dogs get sick when they groom themselves and eat dirt that has been contaminated. Because of this, dog owners must always pick up after their pets. Visit this website to learn more on other hygienic practices for your dog.
Walking through the contaminated ground.
The only worms that can be caught this way are hookworms. The parasites can enter the dog’s skin through any part of its body that comes in contact with infected soil, like its paws or belly.
Ingestion of infected animals.
You can get roundworms, hookworms, tapeworms, and whipworms by eating an infected animal, like a rodent, which can get worms like dogs. It can be caught from dogs that eat the dead bodies of domestic animals like sheep. Raw dog food can be dangerous for the same reason. Tapeworms are the only intestinal parasite that infected fleas can only pass on. A dog can only get infected if it eats a flea with tapeworm eggs.
How to treat intestinal worms in dogs?
Worms in dogs can usually be treated if they are found, stopped, and treated before they get too bad. Your vet can give you the right deworming medicine and tell you how to give it to your pet based on the type of parasite and how bad the infestation is.
Before buying or giving your dog any over-the-counter or prescription medicine for worms, it is very important to talk to your vet. Your vet is the only one who can figure out how bad the infestation is, does your pet need veterinary surgery and give you the right number of treatments and any other advice.
Conclusion
Before you treat your dog for worms, you need to know if your dog has them and what kinds of intestinal parasites there are. Depending on your dog’s specific situation, your vet may suggest regular deworming treatments instead of or in addition to feces exams.
