Fleas and other parasites need always to be given the highest priority by dog owners. The very common occurrences of flea bite allergy in dogs causes worry to many dog owners every year, especially in the summer. This is because flea bites often induce allergic reactions in the area bitten by the fleas, which is often on the back above the tail. In these cases, the affected skin becomes hairless due to the dog scratching itself very vigorously.
Heavy flea infestations can cause severe dermatitis in dogs. If the flea bites cause allergic reactions or dermatitis in the dog, it really ought to be taken to the vet, because on many occasions, the dog will be experiencing severe discomfort.
The vet will provide a cream to ease the itching and powder or a spray to kill the fleas. Therefore, prevention is better and medicated collars are available to treat and prevent an infestation of external parasites like ticks and fleas.
Apart from fleas, other parasites like ticks and lice plus the internal parasites like hookworms, round worms, whip worms etc. can have an adverse effect on the the well-being of your dog. For instance, if hookworms have infected a dog, that dog will almost surely become anaemic soon. The signs of anaemia become more obvious depending on the advancement of the hookworm infection.
Hookworm larvae will enter directly through the skin and cause severe problems inside the infected dog. Such dogs may have cuts on the paws and on the skin due to dermatitis. Frequently, skin rashes result in such cases and the affected animal may also pass runny stools, which are tinged red with blood.
Nearly all dogs and definitely all puppies will have round worms at some time, which is why dogs can sometimes be seen rubbing their bottoms along the ground. However, if round worms are present in very large numbers, affected puppies show a pot belly, which is easily noticeable by the dog’s owners themselves. This can result in malnutrition and even death. A dose of piperazine salts is given orally for the treatment of this condition. However, broad-spectrum anthelmintics like pyrantel pamoate, fenbendazole etc. will also cure this very common condition.
There are many drugs on the market to treat fleas and other parasites these days, although medications containing the drug ‘ivermectin’ seem to be preferred by many dog owners to clear up fleas and other parasites in dogs. This drug is available for injection or oral use but is now even available for external application too.
If you are experiencingproblems getting rid of fleas on your dogs, please follow the ‘fleas’ link, however if you just want to read more about dogs, please go here: Man’ Best Friend – the Dog You can get a unique content version of this article from the Uber Article Directory.
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