deworming

[Val,Cooper and Bently]

How often would you recommend to deworm and what product would you recommend.

[F, Calla & Luca]

I would never recommend deworming unless you have evidence that your dog actually has worms. If that were true, I would follow my vets recommendations. My dogs have never been dewormed since they have lived with me.

[Val,Cooper and Bently]

Cooper had a very bad case of worms as a puppy ...he actually vomitted them up.My vet wants me to deworm him every month .I don't think this is necessary but not sure.He said since he had them so bad it means he is probably going to be prone to getting them easily.I never had a dog with worm problems so I am confused.

[Val,Cooper and Bently]

I haven't seen any signs of worms in him since he was a baby and he is now 17 month.When he had the worms bad he was vomiting his food up also.He no longer has any of these issues.I know I should trust my vet but is it really necessary to do it every month .

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I have lived with dogs all my life and never had to deworm one. I had a foster with tapeworms, and even then, the vet gave him one dose of medication and that did it. I agree with F, I would never deworm a dog unless he had a confirmed case of worms, and then I would consult a vet.

I don't think a dog can be prone to getting worms; he has to be exposed to them to get them. How old is Cooper, what kind of worms did he have, and did he have them when you got him?

[Val,Cooper and Bently]

He had round worms.I agree I never dewormed my other dogs.I would guess he probably had them when we got him because his vomiting was every couple of days from the time we brought him home.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

It's much more common for dogs to who are living among lots of other dogs (and lots of other animal's poop) to get worms. I'd agree that he came from the breeder with them.

Is this something the vet told you recently, or back when Cooper had the worms?

[Val,Cooper and Bently]

He told me when he was 6 months old that I should deworm him every month. I asked if I could get a stool sample done every few months to check for worms instead of deworming him and he said it wasn't accurate.The reason this all came about is that about 4 weeks ago he was laying out on the deck and we seen a round worm laying right by cooper .I know it sounds crazy but it was definitely a round worm so I deformed him because it had been 2 months since I had last did him and when I deformed him there was nothing in his poop.Where the heck did this worm come from and why wasn't there any in his poop from the dewormer.Crazy story but true.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Do you live in the country where other dogs and animals have access to your property?

[F, Calla & Luca]

If Cooper were my dog I would definitely get a second opinion before continuing to deworm him monthly.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Me, too. I've read that excessive use of dewormers can lead to GI problems.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Here is some information on roundworms: http://www.marvistavet.com/html/roundworms_in_dogs___puppies.html

Note that the article says that a dog should have a follow-up dose of dewormer or two after the intial treatment, but after that, a regular fecal at the annual exam should be sufficient.

HOW INFECTION OCCURS:

In dogs, there are four ways by which infection with Toxocara canisoccurs:

• Consuming infective worm eggs from soil in the environment (generally through normal grooming).
• Nursing from an infected mother dog.
• Consuming a prey animal (usually rodent) that is carrying developing worms.
• During embryonic development when an infected mother dog is pregnant (most puppies are infected this way).

So it doesn't look like there is a risk unless there are worm eggs in the soil which Cooper comes into contact with, or if he is hunting and consuming wild animals. It's always important to supervise dogs outdoors.  

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Valerie, I would start giving Cooper some plain unflavored fat-free yogurt or a good probiotic (do NOT buy Fortiflora from the vet), especially if you continue to deworm him. It's important to keep some good flora going in his digestive tract with all this deworming going on. Don't give the probiotics within a day or two of using the dewormers, it will cancel it out. And I would get a second opinion from another vet.