Fleas and Other Parasites

Fleas and other parasites need always to be given the highest priority by dog owners. The all too common incidences 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. If the flea bites cause allergic reactions or dermatitis in the dog, it really ought to be taken to the vet, because on many occasions, the dog will be experiencing severe discomfort.

The vet will provide you a salve to soothe the itching and reduce the inflammation and some powder or a spray to kill the fleas. Prevention is better than cure and medicated collars are available to treat and prevent an infestation of external parasites like ticks and fleas.

Besides fleas, other parasites like ticks and lice plus internal parasites like hookworm, round worm, whip worms etc. can affect the health of your dog. For instance, if hookworms infect a dog, that dog will normally be anaemic. The signs of anaemia become more evident depending on the degree of infection by the hookworm.

Hookworm larvae can pass directly through the skin and cause problems inside the affected dogs. Such dogs may show lesions due to dermatitis on the paws and on the skin. Frequently, skin rashes are the result in such cases and the affected animal passes loose stools, which are tinged red with blood.

Nearly all dogs and definitely all puppies will have round worms at some time, which is why dogs can sometimes be seen rubbing their bottoms along the floor. 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. This can result in malnutrition and even death. A dose of piperazine salts can be given orally for the cure of this problem. However, broad-spectrum anthelmintics like pyrantel pamoate, fenbendazole etc. will also cure this very common condition.

There are many drugs on the market to treat fleas and other parasites these days, although medications including 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.