Granted, there are so many benefits that come with having a dog, from the emotional to the physical. Your dog can make you more active, be your trusted companion, and also bring you anxiety and stress relief. Because the advantages are so many, it is easy to lose sight of the fact that dogs are carriers of some nasty parasites. Some of the parasites are zoonotic, and so your dog can transmit and thereby infect humans they come into contact with. Take a look at these three parasites you can catch from your dog.
The Three Parasites
- Hookworms
These are parasites that usually attach to your dog’s intestine and feed off its blood leaving your dog anaemic and ill-looking. Your dog gets hookworms from eating something that has the larvae or from mother to puppy. You can become infected if you get into contact with soil your dog has infected.
2. Tapeworms
One way that dogs get infected by tapeworms is through the ingestion of infected fleas found on their skin. This is one of those times where self-grooming does more harm than good. Your dog might experience weight loss and vomiting, become lethargic and vomit when they have diarrhea. You can get it when your skin comes in contact with the rear end of your dog.
3. Roundworms
These are another common group of parasites that make a home of our dog’s small intestine. Puppies are more susceptible because of their vulnerable bodies, and they get it by ingesting the infected larvae. You can also get infected when you accidentally eat larvae from dog’s feces in the environment.
Are You At Risk?
The wonderful news is that your body should be able to fight off the parasites. However, if you have a compromised immune system, then you might be more likely to fall sick from the parasites. That means if you are already ill, then it will be easier for the parasites to attack you.
How To Protect You and Your Pup
So one of the easiest and most straightforward ways to protect yourself and your fur baby from these pesky parasites is to keep impeccable hygiene. You can use flea prevention measures such as those from https://fr.nexgardspectra.com/ to keep them away. Frequently bathe your dog as well to keep the parasites of him or her. Also have their beddings, toys, and other things they use cleaned as often as possible.
You can also look into dewormers and how they can work so that you can protect your dog and yourself. Prevention, they say, is usually better than cure, and so it is better to solve the potential problem at the initial stages before it gets risky for you.
The most important decision you can take for your dog is also to visit the veterinarian regularly to get ahead of the problem.
If you want to have the most fantastic time with your best friend, then you must do everything possible to keep them healthy. Once in a while, they may encounter harmful parasites, but if you’re aware, you can nip it in the bud before you get infected.