# Help with dog parasites



## ZEROPILOT (Dec 28, 2015)

Long story short: My new puppy received her second round of shots with a fecal test. The fecal test was negative.
Two days later when she was pooping, out came a white worm in the poo. it was moving and about 5mm long. I took the dog and the worm to the vet, but the worm had died. It was diagnosed as a tapeworm and she was given a de-wormer pill. We go back in three weeks for her last shots and to check for more worms.
My question is does this look like a tapeworm? (I drew a picture of the thing that I saw.)
Also, a few days later she expelled several more that looked to be all dead.
The worm that was alive could get longer and fatter and eventually shrank and died. The drawing is of the general shape. Not the size.
would a general de wormer kill everything even if it is/isn't tapeworms?


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## Pearly (Dec 28, 2015)

ZEROPILOT said:


> Long story short: My new puppy received her second round of shots with a fecal test. The fecal test was negative.
> Two days later when she was pooping, out came a white worm in the poo. it was moving and about 5mm long. I took the dog and the worm to the vet, but the worm had died. It was diagnosed as a tapeworm and she was given a de-wormer pill. We go back in three weeks for her last shots and to check for more worms.
> My question is does this look like a tapeworm? (I drew a picture of the thing that I saw.)
> Also, a few days later she expelled several more that looked to be all dead.
> ...


Hey there! Finally I can be of some assisance! I'm in learning phases in totr knowledge but know thing or two about human medicine (we share many parasites with dogs/cats). Tape worm segments break off and come out the animal's butt sometimes with poo, other times they just fall out like little moving grains of rice. I once rescued a beautiful cat who was infested with all kinds of stuff including tapeworm. Our vet of 19 years is great about teaching and explaining things. And the dewormer pill should work on your puppy. I'm just curious about the vet check you had said your puppy had. Wasn't there a fecal test that was negative? Just curious


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## ZEROPILOT (Dec 28, 2015)

Yes. The fecal test was negative..Though I am 99% convinced that no one actually looked at it. (I bought some of her latest in a zip lock bag.)
This time, I'll bet they actually check!


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## ZEROPILOT (Dec 28, 2015)

It did look a lot like a grain of rice. It crawled around and wasn't a segment.
I've just never associated a tapeworm with anything so small.


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## Pearly (Dec 28, 2015)

I know, it doesn't look anything like "a segment", it's just like... moving grain of rice! Crawling, moving, contracting, getting fatter then stretching, yes?


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## Pearly (Dec 28, 2015)

Tapeworm body is all those "segments" connected together into a long... tapeworm! Each segment is loaded with eggs and once eggs reach maturity the segments break off and host sheds them all over to assure perpertuating its life cycle


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## ZEROPILOT (Dec 28, 2015)

Lovely! I hope we kill them all quickly.
I thought that it was strange. One pill. One time.
But it is a 2 pound puppy.


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## WithLisa (Dec 28, 2015)

Sadly they don't always find anything in the fecal tests. There IS nothing to be found if the tapeworm didn't shed any segments on that day. 
It can be helpful if you take more than just one sample (if possible I always take samples of three consecutive days) but even then there's no guarantee. 

Hope your puppy got rid of the tapeworm.


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## ZEROPILOT (Dec 28, 2015)

WithLisa said:


> Sadly they don't always find anything in the fecal tests. There IS nothing to be found if the tapeworm didn't shed any segments on that day.
> It can be helpful if you take more than just one sample (if possible I always take samples of three consecutive days) but even then there's no guarantee.
> 
> Hope your puppy got rid of the tapeworm.


If it is true that each segment looked like a worm, then the day that she pooped out a LOT of them might have been the whole thing. I've seen nothing since and I must look like some kinda fool getting down in the grass each time she poops to take a look.


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## Pearly (Dec 28, 2015)

I'd be this same fool snooping through the dog's poo in the grass looking for hard evidence i recall that our vet gave all of my cats one pill each (i brought the rescue in and stupid me didn't think of her infecting my other cats) and it was just one time. If I recall correctly that pill was supposed to kill everything including flea eggs. Your little puppy is so precious I hope this has been the last problem you've had with her. From now on: notjing but enjoyment of years of pure love and cuteness


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## ZEROPILOT (Dec 28, 2015)

Yes. I just want the best start for her.


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## Tom (Dec 28, 2015)

Different wormers must be used for different worms. There is not a one-drug-kills-them-all solution. This is why your vet should insist on fecal exams before any treatment is offered. Yes, they can come up negative, but you still need to check first.

Talk to your vet about preventative worming. My vet had us do three rounds of Panacur.

I agree that what you saw was a tapeworm segment.


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## ZEROPILOT (Dec 28, 2015)

The test was negative and I saw the worm or segment days after that test and went back. She was given the pill solely on the vet tech looking at the worm/segment that I carried in inside of a glass bottle that I had removed from her droppings.
I am relieved that the consensus is a tapeworm. That was the diagnosis and what the pill was given to treat.

Thanks for the replies. I've never had a dog that had such issues.
Tortoises, yes.............


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## Pearly (Dec 28, 2015)

ZEROPILOT said:


> The test was negative and I saw the worm or segment days after that test and went back. She was given the pill solely on the vet tech looking at the worm/segment that I carried in inside of a glass bottle that I had removed from her droppings.
> I am relieved that the consensus is a tapeworm. That was the diagnosis and what the pill was given to treat.
> 
> Thanks for the replies. I've never had a dog that had such issues.
> Tortoises, yes.............


Your vet didn't react in any stronger way because they see tapeworm in dogs ALL THE TIME and know exactly how to get rid of it. Suki will be fine. She is so precious!


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## ZEROPILOT (Dec 28, 2015)

Pearly said:


> Your vet didn't react in any stronger way because they see tapeworm in dogs ALL THE TIME and know exactly how to get rid of it. Suki will be fine. She is so precious!


Thanks. She seems so helpless, you know.
the tortoises are like little indestructable tanks by comparison.


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## Tom (Dec 28, 2015)

Your dog's name is Suki? I have a dog named Suki. 

Cool!


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## Pearly (Dec 28, 2015)

ZEROPILOT said:


> Thanks. She seems so helpless, you know.
> the tortoises are like little indestructable tanks by comparison.


I know, she's such cute baby!


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## ZEROPILOT (Dec 28, 2015)

Suki thanks you


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## Pearly (Dec 28, 2015)

Omg! If she isn't the CUTEST pup ever!!!!! Watch out, my Mom lives close to you (Lighthouse Point) and she'd commit crime for a pup like Suki


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## MPRC (Dec 28, 2015)

Rice = Tapeworms
Spaghetti = Rounds

I hope you've already had dinner.


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## ZEROPILOT (Dec 29, 2015)

LaDukePhoto said:


> Rice = Tapeworms
> Spaghetti = Rounds
> 
> I hope you've already had dinner.


Really, it's all about the sauce!


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## MPRC (Dec 29, 2015)

Also, a dog that has healthy worms (the worms themselves are in good health, not the worms are beneficial) wont be shedding large quantities. Once the worms are unhealthy from the medication is when you are going to see them. 

After 7 years at a vet clinic I am a fan of the "de-worm on the first visit, de-worm 3 weeks later, de-worm as needed" method. We would do it once a year for some people when they got their vaccinations and others would only have it done as a puppy or when they saw worms.


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## ZEROPILOT (Jan 2, 2016)

It's been over a week and I'm seeing them again.
I'll call the vet on Monday.
They are alive and squirming.


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## MPRC (Jan 3, 2016)

Sometimes it takes a few applications to get rid of all of the worms. So long as the pup is happy active and maintaining weight it's not an emergency, it's just disgusting. We have to de-worm our cat every couple of months because she always has tapeworms. It's just become part of the routine. Catch the cat, check for wounds from fighting with racoons, stuff pill down throat, offer treat, get snubbed for the next week because you upset the cat.


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## ZEROPILOT (Jan 4, 2016)

So. They first pill was a powder filled capsule.
I opened it and mixed the powder in a spoonful of her soft food. It didn't kill them all. It was Drontal plus 22.7mg.
Today the vet agreed that the worms were still in force and gave her a tapeworming injection.
The name of the drug is not on my invoice. It was very thick and took a while to load into the syringe.(it says only code 3510)
Recheck in 1.5 weeks with her last round of baby shots.


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## MPRC (Jan 4, 2016)

Drontal really is a great drug, I would assume she likely just had a massive parasite load. Good luck on the battle. Ivermectin is sometimes used as an injection for parasites and that stuff is a nasty mean drug. Most vets try not to use it unless they have to. (sounds like she needs the extra help though).


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## ZEROPILOT (Jan 5, 2016)

LaDukePhoto said:


> Drontal really is a great drug, I would assume she likely just had a massive parasite load. Good luck on the battle. Ivermectin is sometimes used as an injection for parasites and that stuff is a nasty mean drug. Most vets try not to use it unless they have to. (sounds like she needs the extra help though).


That might be it. He said it's powerful enough to "kill the host".


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## ZEROPILOT (Jan 5, 2016)

Today I'll do a little check and see if they are leaving dead or alive.


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## Maggie Cummings (Jan 5, 2016)

LaDukePhoto said:


> Drontal really is a great drug, I would assume she likely just had a massive parasite load. Good luck on the battle. Ivermectin is sometimes used as an injection for parasites and that stuff is a nasty mean drug. Most vets try not to use it unless they have to. (sounds like she needs the extra help though).



Ivermectin will KILL tortoises who eat dog poop after the dog had been wormed with Ivermectin. Bad Bad around tortoises.


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## ZEROPILOT (Jan 5, 2016)

maggie3fan said:


> Ivermectin will KILL tortoises who eat dog poop after the dog had been wormed with Ivermectin. Bad Bad around tortoises.


Thanks for the heads up Maggie!
Right now all of my tortoises are in their pens. I'll keep them there!


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## ZEROPILOT (Jan 6, 2016)

New question:
It's been two days and I see NO evidence of tape worm segments anymore in her poo.
IF the tape worm(s) is/are dead, would they be expelled or absorbed?
I've seen two YOUTUBE videos that my brother sent me of how huge and long these things are. Of people pulling them out of a puppies rear and they just keep on coming out!
What should I expect?
Thanks.


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## ZEROPILOT (Jan 6, 2016)

I just read on the internet that dead tapeworms would be absorbed via body enzymes.
SO, no visible evidence is good.


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## Pearly (Jan 6, 2016)

Omg! Poor baby Suki!!!! I hope she doesn't get any ill effects from the medicine


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## ZEROPILOT (Jan 6, 2016)

Pearly said:


> Omg! Poor baby Suki!!!! I hope she doesn't get any ill effects from the medicine


She seems to be 100% herself. Thanks.
She got a puppy dose.


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## MPRC (Jan 6, 2016)

Generally they are absorbed. Now stop scaring yourself with tapeworm videos.


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