I knew something was wrong...

[Emily]

I should have trusted myself!

Gah, Keeva has just been... weird! For like weeks, she has been kinda dull. It was so vague and so hard to explain to people, but she just wasn't herself. Her appetite was even reduced, which is SO WEIRD. I've never seen a dog that likes food the way she does; ask Lindsey, LOL. Her prey/toy drive was still pretty good, but she just wasn't her usual freakish self. This combined with seemingly random stomach issues - and I mean like, perfect poop one minute, to full blown diarrhea two hours laters, with no respect to what she was eating or when, had me really worried. She also even had some weirdness in temperament, which I tried to attribute to her just going through a phase, but she was acting spooky to new things in the environment, which she had never, ever done before. Loud sounds too - and this dog used to sleep while I used a shop vac at work!

The thing is, all her symptoms were so vague and random I didn't know what to even tell a vet if I brought her in.

Welp, yesterday morning, she pooped and.... worms. Tapeworms, to be specific. I've been so happy to see parasites. Everything makes so much sense now, and it's an easy fix! I have even read that beyond the digestive upset, dogs with a high tapeworm load can present with unusual skittishness, for whatever reason.

She's had one dose of wormer and is already back to her freakish normal. We went for a long walk yesterday and she was back to being my unflappable little tyrant. I live IN the city, so our walks are never quiet. We passed people unloading a moving truck - not a peep or a spook. Truck honked - not a problem.

Got home and she gobbled down her food like maniac and then we played tug and did a little OB, and she's back to her crazy self.

Anyway, I made this thread so I could celebrate my dog's nasty parasites, and also because it has reminded me to always trust my gut. We KNOW our dogs and we KNOW when something is up - and they do the same thing for us.

And just because:

"AWAAAAAAAAAAAY!"

IMG_2275 by Traveling Koolie, on Flickr

"Worms in mah butthole? ...Maybe."

IMG_2019 by Traveling Koolie, on Flickr

[Kat09Tails]

glad it turned out to be something simple and not horridly gross (well worms are gross, just not horridly gross.)

[~WelshStump~]

Ewww... Problem with those things is that a lot of OTC and even vet given dewormers don't target Tapeworms. And they are also spread by fleas, which have been a growing problem the past few years! Yucko's. I would like to say, worms or not, Keeva is one darn CUTE puppy!

[SarahHound]

Glad you sorted it out

[Emily]

Originally Posted by ~WelshStump~

Ewww... Problem with those things is that a lot of OTC and even vet given dewormers don't target Tapeworms. And they are also spread by fleas, which have been a growing problem the past few years! Yucko's. I would like to say, worms or not, Keeva is one darn CUTE puppy!

Lol, well, research and reading the label is helpful. I picked one that adresses tapeworms, and yep, I know how it's spread. All the dogs in my house get spot on, but I guess a flea here or there is bound to happen. *sigh*

We actually think our recently adopted cat may have brought a flea or two (and some tapeworms) with him from AC. Stupid cat.

[Kat09Tails]

Last time mine got them it was from eating crap... squirrel crap. Just another reason they are the mortal enemy of dogkind.

[Emily]

Originally Posted by Kat09Tails

Last time mine got them it was from eating crap... squirrel crap. Just another reason they are the mortal enemy of dogkind.

Keeva has been really into dog poop lately, but from what I've read tapeworms aren't spread that way. But I got a wormer that treats both kinds of tapeworms, just in case.

[Kat09Tails]

Originally Posted by Emily

Keeva has been really into dog poop lately, but from what I've read tapeworms aren't spread that way. But I got a wormer that treats both kinds of tapeworms, just in case.

The more common one is through fleas. Dipylidium

The other which can be from crap eating... or food is Echinococcus.

Both are pretty gross.

[Emily]

Originally Posted by Kat09Tails

The more common one is through fleas. Dipylidium

The other which can be from crap eating... or food is Echinococcus.

Yep, I know. But I kept getting the impression that dogs couldn't get Echinococcus from dog poop - or is that not true?

[Kat09Tails]

Originally Posted by Emily

Yep, I know. But I kept getting the impression that dogs couldn't get Echinococcus from dog poop - or is that not true?

You know. I'm not sure. I know my vet mentioned eating rodent crap, deer, and rabbit crap. No idea about dog crap.

I will tell you that almost always if they've got tape they've got roundworm as well. So if your wormer doesn't cover that I'd get some Nemex 2 and dose that as well.