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How can I tell if my dog has worms?

This is a question that we often get from sitter and owners who work with Rover. Help the community out by answering them in our forum!

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Your dog will be excessively itching and possibly dragging it's butt across the floor. The best way to tell if your dog has worms is to take him/her to the veterinarian.

Some signs to look for is diarrhea with blood in the stool, rubbing or licking their rear often, and if their tummys are bloated.

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If he's eating a lot, but not gaining weight. If he's scratching excessively (especially on his butt). Diarrhea (sometimes with blood).

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Most often, worms can be seen in the feces or in the hair around the rear. However, not all kinds are visible to the naked eye. Tapeworms may appear as small moving segments which later dry out to resemble grains of rice. If your dog scratches their bottom on the ground or against furniture, they may be itchy due to infection. Itchiness however can also have other causes. Bloated stomach or belly is another symptom. This is often seen in puppies who get worms from their mother. Weakness, increased appetite, constant hunger, and weight loss.

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It will depend on how bad the infestation is. IF you see the dog's tummy to be very bloated, that's typically a sign of heartowrms that have been in the system for quite some time. YOu can't tell always just by looking at the boop. Heartworm tests are done with a blood test. Evidence of worms may look like spaghetti if roundworms or rice if tapeworms in the poop, Diagnosis is usually a fecal or blood test depending on what type of parasite you are looking for. Typically takes 2 doses to deworm but sometimes it may take more. * Remember some worms, such as roundworms and hookworms, can be transferred from dogs to humans through direct contact with dog feces. For this reason, use gloves when handling infected feces and always wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water afterwards.

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Animals with worms may show no obvious outward signs of infection. Normal bowel movements do not rule out the possibility of parasite infection. However, when signs are present they can include diarrhea, or blood tinged stool, mucous in the stool, variation in appetite, poor hair coat, weight loss and vague signs of abdominal or rectal discomfort, abdominal enlargement, scooting of the hindquarters and excess licking or irritation around the anus. Some parasites can cause severe blood loss and even death, especially in young, weak or malnourished pets.

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Some worms or intestinal parasites are visible and some are not. Tapeworms look like tiny grains of rice and cause excessive itching around the anus. Typically the feces is still normal and the dog is really hungry. It can usually be treated with a one time dose of Drontal and a continuous preventative flea treatment once a month since the root cause of tapeworms is due to dogs ingesting fleas and flea eggs. Roundworms are also visible and look like spaghetti. They can cause diarrhea & bloating depending on the severity. A fecal test should be done to confirm results and can be treated with Pyrantel. All puppies should have a fecal test done @ 6 weeks of age and deepened regardless of results. Adult dogs should be tested once a year as well as deformed.

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The best way to tell if your dog has worms or some other type of internal parasite would be to take a fecal sample into your local veterinarian to be checked! However, diarrhea, vomiting, and scooting can all be signs of parasites, so keep your eye out and monitor your pets stools!

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Take your animal to your veterinarian to have a fecal test ran. If your pup does have worms, keep it away from other animals during the medicated process and pick the poop up immediately. You don't want other animals getting anything.

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You may see evidence of worms in the stool, but some are microscopic so the best way to confirm whether or not your pet has intestinal parasites is to submit a stool sample to your veterinarian.

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Different worms=different symptoms.

Generally an inspection of the feces (or vomit) or around the anus is needed to confirm the problem. If you are suspicious there is a problem but don't see anything don't ignore your concern. Watch for belly bloat, or if the dog rubs their anus on the carpet. Even if you don't see worms but witness those things there is a likelihood you are right. Either way a trip to the vet is in your very near future.