Pet Dog Tapeworms: What Are the Signs and How to Prevent Them?

     Feeding your food with clean innova dog food or science diet dog food can definitely give you a healthy pet and avoid the attack of parasites. Tapeworm or scientifically called as Dipylidium caninum is a parasite that is most commonly found on your pet dogs. They are found in the small intestine's lining attaching it's head and they can grow up to 4 to 20 inches long. They are segmented, white and flat and when they mature the tail segment (they look like grains of rice) cut off which contains the eggs of the tapeworm and can easily be seen on dog's feces or crawling around their rectum.

How did the tapeworms get into your pet dog?

Dogs get infected by tapeworms by ingesting a flea that contains tapeworm eggs or any animal who acquires this infection also from eating on the ground or on grasses such as rabbit, rats, etc. This cycle begins when a flea larva eats the tapeworm eggs either at an infected dog's feces or decomposing infected animal or on the ground which was occupied by the dog recently leaving dead skin cells and tapeworm segments. Then a dog, may have swallowed a flea while chewing at an itchy area of its skin or licking an object or the ground where it's been populated by the flea larva. They begin to hatch and the "scolex" also known as the tapeworms head attaches to the lining of your dogs small intestines. Better give them a surely clean innova dog food or science diet dog food.

What are the symptoms if your pet dog is infected by tapeworms?

Tapeworms are not really harmful in your pet because they only require a little bit of nutrients and they are plenty of nutrients passing by to serve both the dog and the tapeworm. Most of the infestation goes unnoticed, unless you find a crawling segment either on the dog's feces, in a area where the dog recently sat on. Sometimes you will notice that your dog often scoot or drag their rear to the ground because of irritation. Sometimes when a worm was detached to the intestine, it will pass through the dog's stomach and because of the irritation they are more likely to throw up with the tapeworm several inches in length tagging along on the dog's vomit.

How to treat or diagnose a dog with tapeworms?

Vets usually examine the dog's stool for any crawling white segments that looked like grains of rice. They also examine if there are segments stuck in the hairs around your dog's anus. Tapeworms are treated orally or by injecting, it then dissolves the protective lining of the tapeworm that makes it easier to digest before it passes so it cannot be seen on your dog's stool.

How to control the infestation of the tapeworms?

Tapeworms are hard to prevent from reoccurring. Even though you are feeding your pet dog with innova dog food or science diet dog food, chances are, it could also eat some things outside of your provision. You need to get rid of the fleas first which are the primary host of the tapeworms by using flea control products. The dog's environment must be clean and free from fleas to prevent from another tapeworm infection to keep your dogs healthy and active. Flea control is the most effective means of preventing tapeworms from infecting you dog.

Can humans get infected by tapeworms through dogs?

There are very rare occasions that a child can be infected of tapeworms by swallowing a flea accidentally or because of poor hygiene. When your child is very attached to it and is playing with your dog around its environment you must see to it that the child washes his/her hands before eating or after he/she touches the dog to prevent from getting infected.