[SeaMonster]

Our vet gave gracie something when she went for her first visit and I'm sure the breeder gave her something.

Is there a worming solution we should be feeding her on regular bases?

 

[Megora]

Are you talking about heartworm prevention? These are Interceptor, Sentinel, Heartguard, etc...

Or does your dog actually have worms?

 

[IowaGold]

Most heartworm preventatives actually also contain intestinal dewormers, so as long as you are giving the heartworm med regularly, you are also deworming your dog. If you live in an area with no heartworms or use a product that doesn't deworm, I believe the recommendation is deworming at least 4 times per year.

 

[SeaMonster]

I use Frontline. She doesnt have worms, I am just wondering if worming meds are something I should give her anyways?

 

[IowaGold]

I use Frontline. She doesnt have worms, I am just wondering if worming meds are something I should give her anyways?

Frontline doesn't have any intestinal parasite protection, so if she is not on a heartworm medication monthly, then yes, she should periodically be dewormed (per your vet's recommendation). It's rare for an owner to actually see worms in the dog's stool (except for tapeworms)-they can be very tiny. When the vet does a fecal they are actually looking for microscopic eggs.

 

[LibertyME]

If you have children around your dog - then worm! Children are notorious for touching tails, receiving dog kisses and poor hand-washing!
If you plan to do therapy dog work then IMHO you owe the clients your visit to be extra vigilant about possible parasites.

 

[doggiedad]

follow your Vets advice.

Our vet gave gracie something when she went for her first visit and I'm sure the breeder gave her something.

Is there a worming solution we should be feeding her on regular bases?

 

[doggiedad]

what if the OP doesn't have children, shouldn't the dog be
wormed????

>>>>>>If you have children around your dog - then worm!<<<<<

Children are notorious for touching tails, receiving dog kisses and poor hand-washing!
If you plan to do therapy dog work then IMHO you owe the clients your visit to be extra vigilant about possible parasites.

 

[Tuckers Mom]

what if the OP doesn't have children, shouldn't the dog be
wormed????

In a word....YES. Tucker recently had to be wormed for tapeworm, I assume he picked it up from a flea bitten dog at our dog park, as he is on frontline plus, and on Iverheart Heartworm preventative. I never saw a flea on him at all, and dogs get tapeworm from eating a flea. I can only assume it was during friendly battle at the park that he picked up this parasite. you never know what your dogs can pick up.....

 

[LibertyME]

yes, but not necessarily monthly...
Depends on the age of the dog...where in the country the dog lives....
I worm Tracer monthly for convenience sake...
My two oldest dogs dog are not longer on heartworm meds as the likelihood that they would contract heartworm AND have the parasites affect their health is slim to none...however I still worm them for other worms on a 3 month schedule.

what if the OP doesn't have children, shouldn't the dog be
wormed????

 

[mylissyk]

I use Frontline. She doesnt have worms, I am just wondering if worming meds are something I should give her anyways?

YES DEFINITELY

Please be sure you are giving your dog Heartworm prevention every single month (for life), to prevent heartworm infection. Frontline does not prevent heartworms.

Are you giving her Heartgard Plus, Interceptor, Sentinel, Revolution or Advantage Multi? They all prevent heartworms, and most prevent other intestinal worms too.

 

[spruce]

YES DEFINITELY

Please be sure you are giving your dog Heartworm prevention every single month (for life), to prevent heartworm infection.

both vets we see (private clinic & more complete hospital) have told us not to worry about Heartworm preventative in our area (same as OP)...be interesting to hear from other PNW people on this

I'm sure if we were going somewhere where heartworm is a factor, they'd recommend tx.

 

[Deb_Bayne]

I was told that the Heartworm meds are only necessary during the warm months and not during the cold winter months. As far as de-worming though I do wonder now if this is something I should be doing for Bayne.

Can one tell the symptoms of worms? Are they the same as in cats? Loss of weight but still eating well or maybe more. I think Bayne is on the slim side but when I took him to the vet she thought he was perfect. Now I still think he's on the slim side but we have no way of weighing him here and the expense of taking him to the vet just for a weigh in and opinion is out of the question for now. He stills eats his meals like it's his last one even though I put water in... I've notice a couple of times that he stops and coughs because he's eating way too fast. I grabbed a stool this morning and it looks ok, nice a firm too, but also I realize that we just can't see worms all the time if they are present. Can I de-worm him anyway without harm even if he doesn't have worms?

I may just phone the vet today just to ask.

 

[Pemphredo]

I was told that the Heartworm meds are only necessary during the warm months and not during the cold winter months. As far as de-worming though I do wonder now if this is something I should be doing for Bayne.

Can one tell the symptoms of worms? Are they the same as in cats? Loss of weight but still eating well or maybe more. I think Bayne is on the slim side but when I took him to the vet she thought he was perfect. Now I still think he's on the slim side but we have no way of weighing him here and the expense of taking him to the vet just for a weigh in and opinion is out of the question for now. He stills eats his meals like it's his last one even though I put water in... I've notice a couple of times that he stops and coughs because he's eating way too fast. I grabbed a stool this morning and it looks ok, nice a firm too, but also I realize that we just can't see worms all the time if they are present. Can I de-worm him anyway without harm even if he doesn't have worms?

I may just phone the vet today just to ask.

My vet always recommends we do monthly wormer on all our pets... all the time....so they get wormer once a month even if we don't think their is any worms as a prevention measure.

 

[OutWest]

I give both dogs heartworm meds every month on the 1st (oops! need to do that today).

But as far as intestinal worms, etc. Does anyone know how bad they are in Northern California? I don't hear much about them. Tess is a therapy dog so now I worried I should be giving her something else.

 

[IowaGold]

I give both dogs heartworm meds every month on the 1st (oops! need to do that today).

But as far as intestinal worms, etc. Does anyone know how bad they are in Northern California? I don't hear much about them. Tess is a therapy dog so now I worried I should be giving her something else.

Unless you are using one of the very few heartworm meds that doesn't do intestinal parasites, you are covered!

I don't know how bad intestinal parasites are in your area, sorry. They are worst in the southeast (warm and moist for long periods) and are a lesser problem in cooler, drier areas of our country.

 

[Deb_Bayne]

I phoned the vet office and she doesn't think it's worms but we are welcome to just bring Bayne in and just get him weighed. Typical signs of worms is dragging his butt on the ground, the grabbing of his tail isn't a sign but could be something else. If we notice him biting and hair coming out or dry skin then that is cause for concern. Otherwise we don't have anything to worry about right now.