Tapeworm Treatment Options for Dogs
By: Tippy


Tapeworms are not easily killed by the common over the
counter worm medications sold in pet shops and feed stores.
See your veterinarian if you suspect that your dog has
tapeworms, or you find evidence of tapeworms such as small,
flat moving segments or the dried small white rice-like egg
segments in the dog's feces or stuck to its body or bedding.

By far the best treatment against tapeworms in your dog is
prevention. Try to keep your dog from coming in contact with
intermediate hosts that contain tapeworm larvae. Don't allow
your dog to eat rodents, wild rabbits, or deer carcasses.
And because fleas are an intermediate host for the most
common kind of tapeworm, consistent, safe, and effective
flea control is an essential prevention measure.

If your dog is allowed to eliminate in your yard rather than
while being walked, remove any dog waste from your property
at least once per week. When you walk your dog at the dog
park or on city or suburban sidewalks, remove its waste so
your dog isn't contributing to possible soil contamination
and infection of other dogs.

Keep rats, mice and other vermin away from your property in
as safe but sure a fashion as possible. If you live in an
area with a flea problem, use an environmentally safe flea
killing method in the dog's exercise areas and flea traps or
diatomaceous earth inside your home to kill any fleas that
make their way inside on your dog or yourself.

Keep your dog clean of fleas. If your dog is infested with
fleas it can have tapeworms again as quickly as two weeks
after the veterinarian has treated it.

If you and your dog have been to the park or other place
that is possibly flea-infested, when you get home place the
dog onto a light-colored surface where any escaping fleas
can be seen, and comb the dog with a flea comb. If you find
any fleas, dip the flea and the flea comb quickly into a
small container of rubbing alcohol to kill the flea. Don't
try to kill the flea with your fingers or you will simply be
contaminating your hands with any pathogens that the flea
may contain.

There are some excellent drugs that your veterinarian can
use to rid your dog of tapeworms quickly. The medication may
be administered either by tablets or by injection. Be aware
that these medications kill the worms and the worms then
dissolve in the intestines, so you won't see dead worms in
the dog's waste.

Modern drugs for dog tapeworms shouldn't make the dog ill or
cause it to vomit or have diarrhea. If your dog exhibits
side effects after taking tapeworm medication prescribed by
your vet, be sure to let the vet know about it as there is
probably another cause than the medication.



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