Fleas, Ticks and Worms
Fleas and other parasites ought to always be awarded the highest priority by dog owners. Flea bite allergy in dogs is very common and causes worry to many dog owners every year, especially in the summer, although all year round if your dog lives indoors with central heating. This is because flea bites often produce allergic reactions in the area bitten by the fleas, which is very often on the back just above the tail. In these cases, the affected skin becomes red and bald due to the dog’s continuous scratching of itself.
Heavy flea infestations can cause severe dermatitis in dogs. If the flea bites produce an allergic reaction or even dermatitis in your dog, he/she really ought to be taken to the veterinary doctor, because mostly, the dog will be suffering severe discomfort by now.
The vet will provide a cream to ease the itching and powder or a spray to kill the fleas. Therefore, prevention is better and medicated collars are available to treat and prevent an infestation of external parasites like ticks and fleas.
Apart from fleas, other parasites like ticks and lice plus the internal parasites like hookworms, round worms, whip worms etc. can have an adverse effect on the the health of your dog. For instance, if hookworms have infected a dog, that dog will almost surely become anaemic soon. The signs of anaemia become more obvious depending on the advancement of the hookworm infection.
Hookworm larvae can pass directly through the skin and cause problems inside the affected dogs. Such dogs may have lesions due to dermatitis on the paws and on the skin. Frequently, skin rashes are the result in such cases and the affected animal passes loose stools, which are tinged red with blood.
Nearly all dogs and definitely all puppies will have round worms at some time, which is why dogs can sometimes be seen rubbing their bottoms along the ground. However, if round worms are present in very large numbers, affected puppies show a pot belly, which is easily noticeable by the dog’s owners themselves. This can result in malnutrition and even death. A dose of piperazine salts is given orally for the treatment of this problem. However, broad-spectrum anthelmintics like pyrantel pamoate, fenbendazole etc. will also cure this very common condition.
There are many drugs on the market to treat fleas and other parasites these days, although medications containing the drug ‘ivermectin’ seem to be preferred by many dog owners to treat fleas and other parasites in dogs. This drug is available for injection or oral use but is now even available for external application too.
If you are having problems getting rid of fleas on your dog, please follow the ‘fleas’ link or if you just want to read more about dogs or training dogs, please go here: Man’ Best Friend – the Dog
