Fleas, Ticks and Worms

Saturday, February 05th, 2011 | Author: Owen Jones

Fleas and other parasites need always to be given the top priority by dog owners. The very common occurrences of flea bite allergy in dogs causes concern to many dog owners every year, especially in the summer. This is because flea bites can cause allergic reactions in the area bitten by the fleas, which is often on the back above the tail. In these cases, the affected skin becomes hairless due to the dog scratching itself very vigorously.

Heavy flea infestations can cause severe dermatitis in dogs, because the dog will scratch and scratch the area until he bleeds and can also introduce infection. 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 as soon as possible, because usually, the dog will be suffering extreme discomfort by this time.

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 well-being of your dog. For example, if hookworms have infected a dog, that dog will almost surely suffer from anaemia soon. The signs of anaemia become more obvious according to the advancement of the hookworm infection.

Hookworm larvae can enter directly through the skin into the internal body and cause severe problems inside the infected dog. These dogs may show cuts on their paws and on their skin because of dermatitis. Often, skin rashes result too in these cases and the affected animal may also have diarrhoea, which is flecked with blood.

Most dogs and all puppies get round worms, which is why dogs can sometimes be seen rubbing their bottoms along the ground. However, if round worms are present in very large numbers, infected puppies show a pot belly, which is easily noticeable by the dog\’s owners themselves. A dose of piperazine salts can be given orally for the treatment of this problem. However, broad-spectrum anthelmintics like pyrantel pamoate, fenbendazole etc. are also used to 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 experiencingproblems getting rid of fleas on your dogs, please follow the previous link or if you just want to read more about dogs, please go here: Man\’ Best Friend – the Dog Grab a totally unique version of this article from the Uber Article Directory