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"Hi, Doc. I would like you to meet Windstorm. She is our new baby." I looked at the 9-week-old corgi puppy that Mr. Knight was holding. He was trying to cradle her, but her frantic wiggling indicated that she would have preferred to get down. "I can see how she got her name," I said, "but I must say that there is not much of a family resemblance in your new baby." Mr. Knight laughed. "I would be a little worried if there were," he said. "Although I am getting a little hard of hearing. Maybe it would help if my ears were as big as hers." Windstorm turned her head at the mention of her name, perking her ears up. It emphasized how big they were. "What is Windstorm in for today?" I asked. "I just got her yesterday. I think she needs some vaccinations. The breeder said she was due. I also just wanted you to check her out. I have not let her play with my other dog, Butch, yet, and the grandkids are coming over this weekend. I wanted to make sure she was healthy." Mr. Knight put Windstorm on the exam table, and I gave her an exam. Aside from her belly looking a little plump, she looked healthy. "She looks a little potbellied," I said. "That can sometimes be an indication of worms. We will give her a vaccination and a general dewormer. Did you bring a stool sample in?" "Sorry, Doc. I did not think of it. Do you want to hold off on the dewormer until I bring one in?" "No," I said. "It is not uncommon for puppies and kittens to have intestinal worms, and they do not always show up on the first stool sample done. Even if her stool sample turns out to be negative, I would give her a general dewormer. Baby worms can be transmitted in utero from a pregnant dog or cat to her puppies or kittens. It takes a while for the worms to develop into adults in the puppies and kittens. The adult worms lay the eggs. It is the eggs that we look for when we do a stool check." "The general dewormer will take care of the more common worms like roundworms and hookworms. I would like for you to bring a stool sample in as soon as you can, though, so that we can see if Windstorm has any other worms that might need a different medication. We usually give two doses of the general dewormer, two weeks apart. Then we check a second stool sample in three weeks. We like to get two negative stool samples on puppies and kittens." "You did good to not let Windstorm play with Butch yet. It is always a good idea to keep new pets away from other pets until a veterinarian can check them out. If she does have worms, she could give them to Butch. If she had something else contagious, and they had played together, Butch would already be exposed. So, until we get a stool sample, continue to keep them apart and pick her stools up immediately after she goes to the bathroom. If possible, have them go to separate places to use the bathroom." "Another reason we like to do general dewormers with puppies and kittens is because worms can be transmitted to people. It is usually more of a problem with children. The primary means by which people get worms is by eating dirt that has the worm eggs in it or by people playing in the dirt and then putting their hands to their mouths before washing their hands. With the weather getting warmer, children are outside playing more and are therefore more likely to be exposed if they do not wash their hands. Some worms, such as hookworms, can penetrate the bottom of a bare foot. That is why it is important to pick up after your dog immediately after it defecates. It lessens the likelihood that eggs from worms will enter the soil and infect other pets and people. So bring in a stool sample as soon as you can." Mr. Knight did bring a stool sample in later that same day. Windstorm did have roundworms. We decided that as an added precaution, we would treat Butch as well. Mr. Knight started picking up after both dogs defecated. At Windstorm's next visit, we did a stool check on both dogs. They were both negative. Since we like to get at least two negatives on puppies, we checked a third stool sample three weeks after that. That stool sample was also negative. There are many intestinal parasites (worms) that puppies and kittens can acquire. Pets with intestinal parasites may or may not show signs. The most typical are diarrhea plus or minus vomiting. The more common intestinal parasites are roundworms and hookworms. Less common ones are whipworms, tapeworms, coccidia and Giardia. Most are transmitted through contact with infected feces, either direct contact (pets eating poop), or indirect contact (pets or people eating soil with eggs in it). As mentioned before, hookworms can penetrate bare feet. This becomes a more important means of transmission to people during the warmer months, when people are more likely to be barefooted. Tapeworms are different in that they are transmitted through fleas. The pet or person has to swallow a flea to get tapeworms. Giardia are more likely to be found in streams. This is why people should not drink from streams. They can get it, too. It is hard to keep a hot animal from drinking from a stream. People whose pets drink from streams should think of Giardia if their pet starts having diarrhea. Just by washing their hands, people can avoid most intestinal parasites. It is too bad that it cannot be that simple with pets. However, picking up after your pets can go a long way towards decreasing the transmission of intestinal parasites. -Dr. Reggie R. Cox is a graduate of the University of Missouri, Columbia and co-owns and practices at Prime Care Animal Hospital, a small-animal practice located at 750 Route 3 South, Suite 12, Gambrills, MD 21054. She can be contacted at 410-923-7387 or faxed at 410-923-3630. |
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