Heartworm, Fleas and Other Parasites

Every veterinarian, staff members and pet owners would readily agree that parasites are the biggest nuisance infect their pets. As the spring or summers approach, Mother Nature starts boasting its liveliness. Flowers are blooming to their fullest and hence millions of parasites emerge make your pet their new residence. Fleas, ticks, worms, mosquitoes and many other come to action in order to infect your pets.

Parasites are of various kinds and therefore can lead to many different kinds of disease conditions. For example, heartworms will attack your pet’s heart and rupture it badly in case they are not treated in time. Similarly, other parasites can make situation worse by crippling major organic systems of your pet including respiratory, digestive, vital organs etc. Many body parts such as eyes, ears, and mouth are also prone to parasitic attacks.

Different Types of Parasites along with Measures for Prevention and Treatment

  • Heartworms
    Heartworms are injected in the pet’s body by mosquitos. Once inside, these worms then feed inside the pet’s body and eventually reach the organ by passing through various other organs and vessels. A simple blood test can state whether heartworms are present inside your pet or not. In order to make sure they don’t breed inside your pet’s body, you can give medications which could be in either a liquid or a tablet form.
  • Fleas
    Fleas are tiny darkish-brown insects that like to breed in the pet’s coat and skin. If they start feeding, then they can even grow up to 150 times of their own length! The most common symptom of a flea infestation is when excessive amount of scratching is done by your pet. Your pet could also seem quite irritated due to the presence of these fleas. Flea insecticides can help you guard your place against them. Nowadays, anti-flea collars are available in the market to prevent your pet from falling prey to fleas.
  • Ticks
    Unlike other parasites, ticks on the other hand, don’t like to travel much. They hop-on your pet and once they have had a blood fest, they will detach from your pet’s body and fall off. However, while feeding, ticks inject some sort of toxin in their host’s body which diffuses in their nervous system and can eventually make your pet paralysed. Spray products or tick collars can be availed from the market to save your dog from ticks. Cats are sensitive to such chemicals. Hence, there is no such product for them. In their case, however, daily grooming can help a lot.
  • Intestinal Worms
    They are another common class of parasites and also the most ignored too. These worms are named so because of their nature of affecting their host’s intestines and digestive system. Preventive deworming of kittens and puppies should be done after every 2 weeks till they are 12 weeks old. This process should then be repeated only once in every three years.

Heartworm is a parasite that is carried by mosquitoes and affects our pets through the warmer months. We recommend all dogs be on heartworm prevention. A simple blood test can be taken any time to detect this, and an easy once-a-month tablet or topical treatment, prevents it. For both dogs and cats, this same treatment also assists in flea and roundworm prevention. What could be easier?

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