Prevent the tapeworm menace in dogs
With my growing familiarity with the canine world, what I am distinctly observing is that we indeed share a lot of common diseases and infections between us. Tapeworm infection is the latest case in point. Like humans it is very commonly found in the intestines of dogs. These parasites cling to the walls of the intestine and cause diarrhea, discomfort and abdominal pain. In extreme cases it might also lead to weight loss. Sometimes dogs can be seen rubbing their anus against the floor. However, in a vast majority of cases the clinical signs may be non-existent with only the fecal particles exhibiting traces of the worms.
The tapeworms that affect dogs fall into 2 categories- the Taenia species and Dipyllidium caninum (the flea tapeworm). Dipyllidium caninum is the most common of the two. But the million dollar question here is how do our buddies get infected by these worms? It’s simple, by ingesting fleas affected with tapeworms. Sometimes when dogs are invaded by fleas and ticks, they try to get rid of them by licking up their body parts. In the process they end up swallowing one or two such worms. The other less common species can be transmitted through undercooked or raw meat like rice, mice and livestock.
Stool examination is the most reliable method of reaching a definitive diagnosis. When examined microscopically, the stool can be seen swarming with tapeworms. They look like grains of rice.
The treatment depends upon the type of tapeworms present. The most commonly prescribed medicines for such infections include Droncit, Dronal Plus, Cestex and Panacur.
Can tapeworms be prevented? Yes they can be prevented by exercising little caution like controlling fleas and not giving our pets raw and undercooked food.
Tags: diagnosis of tapeworms in dogs, symptoms of tapeworms in dogs, tapeworms in dogs, treatment of tapeworms in dogs