Roundworm, hookworm, tapeworm and whipworm are the most common intestinal worms that can inhabit the intestinal tract of our pets. Some of these worms can even be passed on directly from the mother across the placenta (roundworm). In very young animals worms can cause serious malnutrition, anaemia and even death. For this reason it is incredibly important that puppies and kittens are regularly treated for these infections. Unfortunately it does not take long for an infected baby animal to succumb to an infection.
There is no way to medically prevent a worm infection. Treatment is based on killing the worms that are found in the intestinal tract by using pesticides. Because of this we usually recommend regularly deworming your pet. This gets rid of any worms that find their way into the intestinal tract. Tapeworms and Roundworms can sometimes be seen in the faeces of your pet. Roundworms are small and thin and can be passed in faeces or sometimes vomited up. Tapeworms on the other hand shed segments that appear as moving white grains of rice around the bottom or in the faeces.
How Often Should You Deworm Your Pet?
It is vitally important that puppies and kittens are wormed every 2 weeks from birth to 3 months of age. This is because they can be born with a worm infection. Worms cause devastating illness and death, if not controlled in young animals. From 3-6 months of age we recommend monthly worming and then ‘regularly’ as an adult.
Adult animals generally have higher levels of tolerance and natural immunity to intestinal worms. However a high enough burden can still cause malnutrition, anaemia and inflammatory bowel problems. Some of the worms can also be transmitted to children and can cause serious illness. The most common advice is to deworm your pet every 3 months as this is the length of the life cycle of most worms. By following this protocol you will be able to control infections effectively. Pets at higher risk, including hunting pets, multi-animal households, those that attend doggy day-care or dog parks often and those fed raw game meat or offal, are recommended to have frequent deworming treatments.
Many pets today however live mostly indoor lives. Are fed sterilised commercial diets and have their toilet area cleaned up after them regularly. For these pets, applying a pesticide every 3 months without documenting a need may be more than they require.
What Does Bentons Road Vet Clinic Recommend?
At Bentons Road Vet Clinic we recommend regularly testing for worms. If found to be present we recommend that these pets should be given a dewormer. A faecal float is the easiest way to test if your pet has worms. It simply involves dropping off a fresh sample of your pet’s faeces to us. We will perform the float test and notify you of the results that same day. If needed an effective wormer can be prescribed and methods to reduce the risk of recurrence can be discussed. We believe this is a more responsible approach than blanket application of pesticides to all of our pets all of the time.
If you are concerned that your pet has worms, give us a call or book an appointment with Dr Kelly. We can talk about what we can do to help