How to tell if my dog has worms?

Hello there!

As there are different kinds of worms a dog can contract there are many symptoms and thing to look out for if you suspect your furry friend has worms. The most common types of parasites a canine can contract are roundworms, hookworms, whipworms and tapeworms. Most worm infestations cause any or all of these symptoms: Diarrhea, perhaps with blood, weight loss, dry hair, general poor appearance, vomiting, perhaps with worms in the vomit. However, some infestations cause few or no symptoms; in fact some worm eggs or larvae can be dormant in the pet's body and activated only in times of stress. One of the most visible ways of detecting tapeworms is looking at the dogs poop and their anus shortly after passing the stool. Not always, but in most cases, if the dog has tapeworms you will be able to see little, white, rice-like segments around the anus of the dog. These are tapeworm segments that have been passed through the dogs digestive tract. Any case of worms needs to be taken care of as soon as possible by a veterinarian. If you suspect that your pet has worms it would be a good idea to visit your local veterinarian for a fecal exam. Only your veterinarian can tell you with 100% accuracy if your pet has worms and will need treatment. Hope your dog is feeling much better very soon!

-Lexi F.

Hey Shelly! I believe Lexi provided you with a throurou answer about how can identify if your dog has worms, however, I invite you to consider preventive care and have present that worms are a health threat to people, too. So be sure to protect yourself by being careful when you pick up feces out on walks or in your yard.

Dogs can't contract them by coming in contact with each other, but they can often contract them by coming in contact with an infected dog's feces, and as you might have noticed as a dog owner yourself, dogs looove to stick their noses in other dogs poop to take a sniff!

What I would also recommend you besides visiting your Vet to take care of this, and maybe planning on a preventive care program, be sure to keep your yard clear of pet feces, wash hands frequently and keep away from other animals that may have worms like other dogs and cats (as well as their feces.) In severe cases, you may want to consider treating the area were you dog spends most of his time specially if there is grass or dirt. Ask your veterinarian what he considers best according to your particular case.

I usually check http://1800petmeds.com before buying any prescriptions from the clinic itself ( if they have the same product as the Dog Clinic, you can save an average of $10dlls or a little more. Just make sure you get the prescription from the vet before you leave the clinic! You might need proof when buying it even if it's from a website) and considerate it might take more than 3 business days to get. My second option is to look into http://Chewy.com who have great prices but are more limited with medications. Anyways, hope this helps you and that your furry friend gets better soon!!

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