I believe that every pet owner will suffer from a lot of setbacks during the period of keeping a dog. Some parts of difficulties can be gradually conquered as time and experience go on. However, the rest of the problems may occur throughout a dog’s whole life, even becoming a deathblow, such as a parasite.

For many owners, the tick is one of the familiar parasites, but there are also various parasites besides tick, which will bring a deadly threat for your dog. How much do you know about them?

Extracorporeal Parasite

The parasite can be defined as an extracorporeal parasite and internal parasite. Extracorporeal parasite means a parasite that occurs outside the body of dogs. They adsorb on the skin surface, sucking out nutrients from the dog’s body.

1. Tick

I have told about tick for several times. It’s a common extracorporeal parasite who lives and multiplies by sucking blood from the animal’s body. It is likely to hide in the thick grass or bushes, catching a chance to adsorb on the skin surface of the passed animals.

Ticks can carry eighty-three viruses, fourteen species of bacteria, seventeen spirochetes and thirty-two species of protozoa, a disease vector next to the mosquitoes in nature. Once bitten by it, dogs may suffer skin ulcer, anemia, paralysis or infections.

2. Flea

Flea is a “Vampire” extracorporeal parasite, being good at jumping. There is the main two threat of flea for dogs:

①It will strongly irritate the dog’s skin and makes the dog feel acutely itch. If scratching at full tilt, the dog’s skin will be damaged. If things continue this way, that will affect the dog’s normal rest, reducing their appetite, and even losing weight.

②It will spread disease (Many of them are zoonoses).

3. Acarid

There are many kinds of acarids. Dogs are mainly and easily infected by itch-mite and vermiform mite.

Itch-mite is invisible to the naked eye, adsorbing deeply in the cuticle of dogs, living by eating skin tissue. A dog infected by itch-mite will have severe itching, hair loss, and redness of the skin, which even can cause alopecia universalis and skin lesions. Itch-mite can be spread by contact so that it is often infected between pets in the same bed or house.

The vermiform mite is the most common kind of scared, living in dog’s hair follicles, occasionally living in the sebaceous glands. A small number of vermiform mites won’t be a threat to dogs. But if that is beyond the tolerance of the immune system, the pathological reaction will occur on the dog’ body, such as folliculitis, scab, and depilation, even severely leading to systemic infection and s variety of skin diseases, such as dermatitis and pyoderma.

If there are a large number of acarids multiplying in the hair follicle, the secondary bacterial infections will happen, then causing the hair follicle to rupture, along with the symptom of hypersomnia, fever, swollen lymph nodes, and pain.

Internal Parasite

The extracorporeal parasite always can bring about the skin problem, afterward cause the worse disease. While the internal parasite is the chief culprit for the dogs with diarrhea, bloody stool or abnormal behavior.

1. Roundworm

The group of 3-5 month puppies is the most vulnerable to roundworm.

The adults of roundworm parasitize in the small intestine, imbibing nutrition indigested food. Due to the roundworm is relatively large (10-15cm length), it will mechanically stimulate the intestinal mucosa, blocking intestines, resulting in diarrhea and abdominal pain to dogs. Besides, the toxin released by roundworm will cause the neural symptom.

A lot of roundworms living in the puppies will affect the dogs assimilate and adverse developing. If roundworm is gathered in the small intestine, excepting blocking intestines, even seriously leading to indigitation or bowel perforation to death.

2. Heartworm

Heartworm is spread by mosquito biting. Summer is the epidemic season.

The initial symptoms of infection are not obvious. As the disease progresses, cough, fatigue, loss of appetite, weight loss, rough hair, and anemia will appear, and the skin lesions of pruritus or depilation may occur.

When heartworm reaches out the pulmonary artery, dogs will have the symptoms of dyspnea, ascites, edema of limbs, hydrothorax, pericardial effusion, and pulmonary edema. When the acute vena cava syndrome happens, dogs may suddenly suffer from hemochrominuria, jaundice, anemia and uremia, and even renal failure to death.

3. Hookworm

Hookworm parasitizes in the small intestine. In addition to the worm eggs eaten by dogs, its transmission may also be from hair follicles or broken skin to the body. There are three pairs of sharp teeth in the hookworm’s mouth. Hookworm can firmly attach on the intestinal villus through the teeth, then profusely sucks blood from the bite wounds. So that the gastrointestinal symptom of blood stool (black stool) or abdominal pain will happen. Besides, hookworm sucking blood may also lead to chronic anemia of dogs.

4. Whipworm

The whipworm is also known as arctocephalus. Its head is thin and the back is thick and whip-like. The adult whipworms mainly enter the cecum mucosa through the puncture of the anterior part of the body and parasitize in the deep part of the mucosa, living by sucking blood, plasma and digestive red blood cell. In severe cases, the small intestine will be also infested with whipworms, which includes the symptoms of chronic diarrhea, sticky blood stools, and a foul smell.

The listed above are the most commonly extracorporeal and internal parasite of a dog infected. Although the parasite is terrible, it isn’t unpredictable.

In order to prevent the extracorporeal parasite, please be sure to keep your dog’s environment clean and avoid areas with high mosquito populations. For keeping dogs from the internal parasite, please try not to feed your dog raw meat or unhygienic food. Of course, the most basic way to prevent or cure the extracorporeal and internal parasite is the internal and external insect repellent.

If your dog is accidentally infected by an extracorporeal parasite and has a skin ulceration infection, in addition, to visit the veterinarian in time and apply medicine to the infective wound, you need to prepare a recovery collar for your dog to avoid dog scratching to cause more serious infections and injuries.

PAWZ Road Adjustable Recovery Pet Cone E-Collar with nine sizes, made of environmental semi-transparent ABS, is efficiently anti-microbial and great for recovery from injuries, rashes and post surgery. Soft lint padding on the outside edge, adding additional protection for your puppies or kitties to eat, sleep, drink and lay their head in comfort. Strong adhesion interfaces, it can adjust the size according to neck circumference. It's comfortable for your beloved pet.

PAWZ Road Petal Shape Pet Comfy Cone Recovery Collar with three colors and four sizes, made of comfortable fabric and appropriate cutting with exquisite workmanship, stickup design, and lace appearance. Furthermore, it doesn’t interfere with your pets peripheral vision or in their ability to drink and eat, and make your dog rest more comfortably. You could rest assured to put it on your beloved cat or dog.

In conclusion, if your beloved dog scratches frequently, along with partial depilation, or have abnormal phenomena, such as cough, fatigue, loss of appetite, weight loss, etc. Please visit the veterinarian and have a physical examination on time. I hope all the fur kids can recovery well soon and live a healthy life!

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