The thought of parasites crawling on or living inside your pet is most unpleasant, because they can cause life-threatening illnesses—a good reason to keep these pests at bay. Many parasites affect pets and humans worldwide, but those of most concern for U.S. dogs and cats include fleas, ticks, intestinal parasites, and heartworms. These pesky critters are irritating for most pets, and many can transmit serious diseases to your furry pal and other household members. Our Safe Harbor Animal Hospital team urges you to ensure your pet receives regular parasite testing and control because these are key to your pet’s overall care. In addition, to prevent your pet from experiencing these common parasites’ harmful effects, you should provide your furry pal with year-round parasite prevention.
Fleas in pets
Fleas are tiny creatures, which are visible but often move too quickly to observe clearly. They are extremely common and highly transmissible among companion animals and wildlife carriers. Fleas use your pet as a host, regularly ingesting blood meals to reproduce, which they do quickly and efficiently. Fleas lay eggs on your pet’s skin and fur, which typically fall off into the surrounding environment, pupate, and hatch into larvae that jump back onto your pet to feed, molt, and continue the reproductive cycle. If you see one flea, chances are your pet has hundreds more, and they are already living in your home.
Fleas and their bites may cause itchy and irritated skin, and some pets have severe allergies to flea saliva, which causes extreme itching, skin sores, and hair loss. If your pet has a heavy flea burden, they can experience blood loss, which can cause small, young pets to die. Fleas can also transmit serious diseases to your pet, some of which are also transmissible to humans. Common flea-borne pathogens include:
Ticks in pets
Ticks also ingest your pet’s blood to molt and reproduce, but they are free-living in the environment between blood meals. With the exception of the brown dog tick, which prefers to infest homes and outbuildings, most ticks exist in grassy or brushy, forested areas. Ticks bite people and animals, attaching for several hours or days to feed, and finally falling off—fat and happy. Tick bites can cause some pets to experience allergic reactions, inflaming their skin and leaving a long-lasting red bump.
While attached to pets or people, ticks can transmit many serious—sometimes deadly—diseases, such as Lyme disease. Previously, tick-borne disease affected pets in certain U.S. regions, but tick populations are rapidly expanding because of climate change. Potential tick-borne diseases include:
Intestinal parasites in pets
Unlike fleas and ticks, intestinal parasites don’t transmit diseases. However, they can cause your pet to experience persistent gastrointestinal problems, and if your pet has a heavy parasite load, they can experience dangerous blood loss, especially if they are a small, young pet. Common intestinal parasites include worms (e.g., roundworms, hookworms, whipworms, tapeworms) and single-celled protozoa (e.g., Giardia, coccidia). Pets who have intestinal parasites may not show clinical signs, but others develop acute or chronic diarrhea, or lose weight.
Some intestinal parasites—notably roundworms—can infect humans and cause disastrous consequences. Because humans aren’t a natural roundworm host, the worms cannot easily find their way to the intestines, and when in the larval form, migrate through the body’s tissues, including the nervous system, brain, and eyes, leaving devastating inflammation in their wake. For this situation to occur, the eggs must be ingested. Therefore, children are most often affected because of their often less-than-ideal hygiene practices.
Heartworms in pets
Heartworms are exactly that—worms that live in their host’s heart, lungs, and blood vessels. These worms can become large, and dogs can host hundreds at one time. While cats host only a few heartworms at one time, they can more easily die from infection. Heartworms cause permanent cardiovascular damage, which can eventually cause death. Mosquitoes transmit heartworms, making them extremely common in southern regions that often have high humidity levels. Canine heartworm treatment is expensive, painful, and can be dangerous as the worms die. No heartworm treatment is available for cats. Prevention is key to avoid this devastating disease.
Pet parasite testing and prevention
Your veterinarian will test your pet for parasites at least once per year, which includes a blood test for heartworm and tick-borne diseases, and a fecal test for intestinal parasites. During regular physical examinations, your veterinarian can detect whether your pet is harboring fleas and ticks. Depending on your pet’s age and lifestyle, your veterinarian may urge you to have your pet tested more often than annually.
Parasite prevention strategies require you to administer your pet’s oral or topical medication once per month, but many products currently allow several months’ extended control. Administering your pet’s parasite preventive consistently year-round is crucial to their health, because although seasonal fluctuations occur, these parasites and vectors are active year-round. If you inadvertently forget to administer your pet’s regular parasite preventive, their disease risk increases. Remember, parasite prevention is easier than treating an infection in your pet and eradicating a home infestation.
Many products are available to tailor your pet’s unique parasite prevention strategy, and our Safe Harbor Animal Hospital team most often prescribes combination products that control many different parasites through one application or dose. Each product is developed for cats or for dogs. Never use a dog product on a cat, and vice versa. Rely on your veterinarian to determine your pet’s parasite risk and recommend safe, effective, and appropriate products.
Year-round parasite control is an easy, cost-effective way to protect your pet from the preventable diseases and misery parasites can cause. Schedule your pet’s regular examination with our Safe Harbor Animal Hospital team to determine your furry pal’s parasite risk, and begin administering their uniquely formulated parasite prevention program.
Safe Harbor Animal Hospital is a member of the Animal Hospitals of the Lowcountry, which provides cutting-edge veterinary care—from our family-owned business to the entire Mount Pleasant region for more than 70 years. Visit our website, or check out our sister hospitals—Shuler Veterinary Clinic and Mount Pleasant Animal Hospital—to learn more about our warm, inviting approach to caring for your pet.
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