Dog Whipworms

Dog Whipworms

Considering their small size, whipworms are one of the most debilitating parasites that pets harbor. The whip handle, or body of the worm, is approximately half an inch long, but the whip part is about one and a half inches. This part is “sewn” into the lining of the intestine, but the pest can withdraw it to move. The worm is very thin; even the body is no thicker than the diameter of coarse sewing thread.

Whipworms are usually found in the intestine, but in dogs, they are found in large numbers in the cecum a blind gut where no many can sometimes be seen on postmortem that the lining of that organ appears to be covered with white hair, especially at its upper end. The females lay yellowish eggs of a lemon shape. Incubation in the soil requires about three weeks at a fairly high temperature before the embryos are infected. So far as is known, upon being ingested, the larvae are liberated and at once seek the protection of the dog’s cecum or fasten themselves along the intestine in the large bowel or colon.

Dog Whipworm Facts

• The whipworms mainly infect dogs that are more than 12 weeks of age. This can also be a problem for dogs that are adults.
• The whipworm eggs are not easily removable. If they once infect a dog they can not be easily eradicated. As a good pet owner, you are required to take care of your dog so that it does not get infected with the whipworms.
• Whipworms mainly get infected due to the contamination of feces of either their own or other dogs.
• Unlike roundworms that transfer through transplacental transmission, whipworms are not passed on by the mother to its puppies. The puppies can get infected with a whipworm-infested mother through the contamination of the feces of the mother dog.
• Many effective measures can be taken to control the spread of the whipworm. You may consult a vet doctor who can guide you well to save your dog from whipworm contamination.
• The main source of contamination of the whipworms is the dropping of the dogs that are already infested with whipworms. So, you are recommended to take care of your dog ad keep him in an environment that will be well-cleaned having no traces of fecal matter.
• The dogs that generally stay in small confined areas outside the house are prone to get affected by whipworms.

The whipworms resemble a whip-like structure and they mainly stay in the colon or the rectum of the dogs. Treatment of whipworm is quite tough. For treating whipworm infestation you may provide your dog with fenbendazole or febantel for the duration of 3 to 5 days repeatedly and continue it for several days. You may again administer the medicine after a gap of every 3 weeks. You must also clean and bleach the dog runs as well.

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