Worms, Fleas and Ticks on Dogs

By Owen Jones

Heart worm, fleas and other parasites in dogs need to be eliminated by using the relevant medication on them. Many products have come onto the market to protect dogs from heart worms, fleas and other parasites like hook worms, whip worms, round worms, lice, ticks etc.

Of the heart worms, fleas and other parasites, fleas can produce a hyper sensitive reaction in the infected dog. Animals infested with fleas scratch their skin very vigorously. Often the scratching becomes so severe that the skin becomes super-sensitive and dermatitis occurs in the scratched areas.

The result is often that your dog can not lie down for long or sleep comfortably due to the constant bites by the fleas. Therefore, your dog looks as if has some severe skin issues. If the the animal is not properly attended to for these flea bites, there will often be secondary bacterial invasions in these sites and there may even be a bad smell emanating from the animal's affected skin.

You ought to observe your pet closely in order prevent a serious infestation. It is essential to prevent such a serious outbreak as they are extremely distressing to your dog. Similarly, the skin of the animal needs to be checked regularly for the presence of ticks and lice. In order to do this effectively, you need to look at the dog's skin by separating the dog's hairs. The easiest way to achieve this is by slowly back-combing or ruffling the pet's hair.

Often, if your dog is anaemic, and it is not he result of being plagued by too many fleas, you need to check for hookworm. Symptoms of hookworm are usually anaemia, loose stools and a pot belly. The dog's owner may notice these symptoms by themselves, however, speaking honestly, the dog ought to undergo a routine health examination at the vet's, which involves both faecal and hematological tests.

There are many products available commercially, some of which are useful for dealing with all these conditions by a single dose. Drugs like ivermectin are highly effective and are obtainable in injection, oral and solution forms. The latter should be put directly on the dog's skin. These drugs can induce the prevention of the above conditions too.

Therefore, the best policy to adopt is to keep a keen watch on your dog. This can very easily be carried out at bath time and when you are grooming him. You can use an anti-flea and anti-tick shampoo, which will keep these pests at bay, if used as stated on the bottle. Couple this with regular grooming with a lice comb and the use of a flea collar should keep your pet flea, lice, and tick free. - 29895

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