PUPPY SURVIVAL SECRETS - WORMS
Dr Kong Sing, BVMS, MRCVS
Roundworms
"Singaporeans
don't get infested with roundworms nowadays unless they eat salad," I said
to a tall slim owner of a white parrot-mouth mini-Bull Terrier
presented for its 3rd vaccination.
"Some 60 years ago, mothers in Singapore forced the
pre-teen children
to drink a terrible deworming syrup. The next day, long roundworms
would be
passed out in the stools."
"What has eating salads to do with getting roundworms in
people?" the man's forehead skin furrowed and his lips opened
wide.
"I am a vegetarian."
"Farmers in countries exporting vegetables to Singapore from may
be using human manure as fertilisers." I elaborated. "The worm eggs
in the manure
contaminate the fresh vegetables used for salads. When a
person eats these vegetables, the eggs hatch in his intestines.
The baby worms migrate in the blood
stream of the gut to the lungs. As they develop further,
they get coughed up and swallowed back to
the guts. There, they mature and produce eggs. This is
how people get roundworms in their intestines. This cycle is similar in the the
puppy."
Are roundworms that common in puppies in Singapore in 2005?
Yes. Most of the time, puppies are dewormed by the breeder or the
pet shop operators and the buyer seldom see the real worms.
Tapeworms, whipworms,
hookworms and heartworms. Roundworms are most common in
puppies but there are also tapeworms, whipworms, hookworms and
heartworms affecting puppies. A new puppy owner has so many
questions and it is difficult for the veterinarian to answer all
of them during consultation. Some answers are given below.
Frequently Asked Questions
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1. A free vaccination voucher is given by some pet
shop operators after the sale of a puppy. It is my
responsibility to
ask whether the puppy has been dewormed.
5% of the owners will say,
"No, thanks. Don't see the worms. Maybe, another day".
Or they will reply, "I have seen another vet when the puppy was sick.
A syringe with yellow syrup was squirted into the puppy's
mouth. The vet said once is enough."
The vet might be misquoted. It is true that one dose of a
good dewormer medicine will eliminate all worms existing in the
gut.
However, puppies love to
lick its play pen and surrounding areas. They may eat their own stools.
They do get infested again by faeces containing worm eggs.
All owners appreciate deworming advices especially when they see the roundworms
a day
after deworming.
2. Deworming liquid sold by the pet shop. Is it OK?
If the medicine is a broad-spectrum dewormer, it is acceptable.
More details of what is a broad-spectrum dewormer is given below.
3. Home-breeder's puppies don't have worms.
This is not a guarantee. There are home and
professional breeders who don't deworm the adult female dogs
frequently.
4. Puppy eating stools. Deworm more often.
Every two weeks for four times and then two monthly till the stool
eating habit is abolished.
 5. A new pet shop owner rushed in with a plastic bag containing a few
roundworms vomited out. "Is it normal for puppies to have worms?" The answer is No. Some entrepreneurs start a
pet shop business without experience and they learn from
on-the-job experience.
6. A first-time puppy owner brought a bag of roundworms
passed by his 5-week-old Siberian Husky. "The puppy is
bought from a home breeder and yet it has worms."
Not all
breeders deworm their dogs regularly. They may deworm early but the puppies
are infested again. One deworming dose
is definitely not sufficient in situations where there are
numerous dogs and puppies.
7. A pet shop operator asked me, "The puppy is active but it
has diarrhoea for the past three weeks. The owner keeps phoning me
to resolve the problem. I sent the puppy to a vet to
test for parvoviral infection which was negative." This was a case of a whipworm
infestation. It is much harder to diagnose a whipworm
infestation as there was not many of them and they take as long as
10 weeks to produce eggs which can be detected by examination of
the stools under a microscope. In this case, only one egg
was seen. More frequent deworming is needed to be effective.
8. How do puppies get worms when the mother has
been dewormed?
The dam may have worms hidden in its muscles. These
worms are known as "encysted larvae". During pregnancy, the
worms develop and travel via the blood stream to infect the
puppies.
9. How early soon puppies be dewormed?
As early as two weeks old.
 10.
Are there side effects of deworming?
The puppies given deworming by mouth may stop eating for a
day or have diarrhoea for a day or two.
11. Heartworm in dogs. Is it present in
Singapore? Yes. The baby worms are transmitted by an infected mosquito
to a dog. The adult heartworms live inside the heart.
Prevention throughout the year is recommended. It is best that you
consult your veterinarian for details of prevention such as
monthly tablets or a yearly injection.
12. What is a broad spectrum dewormer?
It is effective
against the various type of canine worms, said to be 12 types of
worms and has the following ingredients:
*Oxantel - active against the whipworm (Trichuris vulpis).
*Pyrantel - active against the roundworms (Toxocara canis,
Toxacaris leonia, Ancylostoma canium, Uncinaria stenocephala).
*Praziquantel - active against the tapeworms (Dipylidium canium,
Mesocestoides spp, Taenia ovis, Taenia pisiformis, Taenia
hydatigena, Taenia multiceps, Echinococcus spp).
13. The yellowish broad spectrum deworming tablet or syrup given
by the vet for deworming. Is it effective against
heartworms? No. It
removes the roundworms, whipworms, hookworms and tapeworms.
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Worms Affecting People
Hydatidosis is a dangerous tapeworm infestation of people, caused
by the Echinococcus spp. The worms grow inside the
liver and other internal organs affecting the functions.
Another infestation is call the larva migrans syndrome is
caused by the roundworm Toxocara canis and affects children,
usually less than 6 months old if they swallow the worm eggs.
 "Wash your hands, wash your hands after touching your puppy!"
the mother will command. The child will hurriedly look for
the tap in my consultation room to
wash his or her hands. Around 1% of the parents
visiting my surgery for vaccination give this advice.
Hygiene is important. Ask your young children to wash their hands before
meals and before sleeping. If you ask them to wash their
hands every time the puppy is handled, your child may
develop an Obessive Compulsive Behaviour, having to look
everywhere for water and soap to wash hands every time they
touch a dog or a dog touches them. Consult your
veterinarian to get broad spectrum deworming medicine and
deworm regularly if you are more worried about your children
getting infested.
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As for the vegetarian who was worried about himself getting roundworms, I
could not advise him further as he was not four-legged. "Are
you a real vegetarian?" I imagined this around thirty-year-old
gentleman as not having to take medication for high cholesterol
levels or high blood pressure so commonly prescribed to older
Singaporeans.
"No, no," he relaxed his facial muscles. "I do drink milk and
eat eggs." Maybe, his chances of
getting roundworms would be considerably lower. His
55-year-old mother reminised, "When I was a child, my mother gave
me a tablet to swallow. The next day, I screamed and screamed.
Mum had to pull out a round worm as long as 20 cm long stuck in my
anus!"
After this episode, I stopped talking about roundworms in people. The
internet generation does not encounter roundworms personally and
their doctors don't prescribe worm medication.
The roundworm infestation in puppies in Singapore is the most
common type of worm seen by the puppy owner, pet shop operator or
breeder. The other worms may not be seen but they do cause
blood in the stools or diarrhoea.
I recommend the following
schedule:
Deworm the puppies with broad spectrum dewormer as early as two
weeks old. Deworm every two
weeks for four times. Then 2-monthly till they are one year old.
More deworming
for those still eating their own stools even though they are past
6 months old. Practise good hygiene too but you don't need
to wash your hands every time you touch your own puppy after it
has been dewormed a few times.
Toa Payoh Vets
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