A lot of dog owners have a totally understandable worry about fleas given that these tiny, biting insects can cause pets to experience allergic reactions, which can be just as annoying to humans as they are to dogs. More often than not, dogs are going to scratch these bites, which can worsen the problem by causing infection.
Not only do pets have to contend with the extraordinary discomfort and potential allergic reactions to flea bites, but bad flea infestations can also cause dogs to experience dermatitis. One very easy and effective way to prevent flea problems with dogs is to invest in medicated collars that are designed to protect against ticks, fleas and many other troublesome parasites. After these collars have been put on dogs, they need to be left on until the time to replace them arrives.
Lice can also have a very negative impact on your dog’s health as can internal parasites, which can be very difficult to see like whip worms, hook worms, and round worms. If dogs have hook worms, they can end up with anemia and the severity of this anemia is greatly determined by how severe these hook worm infestations are.
If your dog has hook worms, he or she will exhibit a few tell-tale symptoms. For instance, your pet’s stool might be loose, mixed with blood or red-tinged, and he or she may have rashes or lesions on the skin.
It’s often a bit easier to determine whether dogs have been affected by round worms given that one of the primary signs of this internal parasite is a potbelly or a round belly. Giving your dog piperazine salts is one way to treat round worm infestations and these can be taken orally, however, this same issues can also be treated with anthelmintics like fenbendazole or pyrantel pamoate among others.
All cat and dog owners have the potential to struggle with fleas, but there is no reason for pets to suffer given the vast range of collars, medications and other options for preventing and killing fleas that currently exist. Ivermectin has been discovered by a lot of dog owners and this medical agent can effectively treat fleas through either oral administration or injection.