When and how to deworm a puppy
Puppies are known for exploring. They sniff, lick, and play with whatever interests them. One downside to their curiosity is the risk of getting worms. Puppies can be born with worms or pick them up from other dogs' or animals' feces, as well as encountering bugs, worms, slugs, and snails.
Because puppies have immature immune systems, they are especially susceptible to illnesses caused by worms. Fortunately, most worm infections are easily treatable by your vet. Here are common questions about when you should deworm your puppy and how it can be done.
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What is deworming a puppy?
If your veterinarian confirms that your puppy has worms after a fecal test, they will prescribe medication to kill the adult worms. Deworming is the act of eliminating worms and internal parasites through medicine.
Deworming only kills the adult worms present in your puppy’s body and does not prevent future infestations. Puppies need a regular deworming schedule and preventive routine as part of their overall good health management to keep worms at bay. It is safe for your puppy.
Puppies have many opportunities to pick up worms in their daily lives from various sources. Larvae can lie dormant in the mother’s muscles and become active with pregnancy hormones, eventually maturing and migrating through the mother’s blood, reaching the placenta or mother’s milk.
Your puppy can also pick up worms by:
- Exploring outdoors: Grass, fleas, mosquitoes, rodents, birds, and bugs can harbor worm eggs. These eggs can stick to your puppy's fur and paws and be ingested during grooming.
- Drinking contaminated water: Infected animals and birds defecate in ponds, puddles, and lakes, leaving behind worm larvae or eggs that can be ingested by your puppy.
- Eating undercooked or raw meat: Puppies can contract tapeworms from consuming undercooked or raw meat.
Worms found in your puppy's stool are typically roundworms and hookworms, residing in the stomach and intestines. These worms pass through as waste exits your dog’s intestines, so you may observe worms or segments in your puppy’s stool.
Various forms of deworming medicine are available for your dog:
- Tablets
- Treats
- Oral paste
- Topical liquid applied directly to the skin
- Injection
While many dewormers can be obtained over-the-counter, it's essential to identify the specific worms first, as blindly treating the problem may not be effective. Your veterinarian will recommend the appropriate medication and dosage based on your puppy’s age, weight, and health.
Most common types of worms
Roundworms are intestinal parasites that feed on the undigested food in your puppy’s intestines. They are the most common and easy to treat.
- Your veterinarian tests your dog to identify roundworms.
- You may see worms or worm segments in your dog’s excrement or around their tail area.
- Infection is through contact with contaminated feces and environments, their mother’s milk, or by eating an infected rodent, bird, or bug.
- Symptoms of roundworms are slowed growth, anemia, a dull coat, a pot belly, and lethargy. Large infestations can cause vomiting, diarrhea, decreased appetite, weight loss, or even an intestinal blockage, which can be deadly.
- Roundworms are zoonotic, and able to spread between humans and animals.
Hookworms can be picked up by ingestion and from contaminated environments. A puppy’s mother can also transmit them through the placenta or her milk. Hookworms ‘hook’ to the intestinal lining and feed off your puppy’s blood, competing for the nutrients your puppy needs to grow and develop properly.
- Fecal float tests can identify adult hookworms. Puppies may have to be tested and treated more than once.
- Treatment consists of a broad-spectrum deworming medication prescribed by a veterinarian.
- Hookworms and hookworm segments may be seen in your puppy’s stools or where they sleep.
- Symptoms of worms are weakness, vomiting, bloody diarrhea, weight loss and a dull coat.
- Humans can get infected through direct contact with worm eggs.
Tapeworms are long flat worms with multiple segments. Each segment has its own reproductive organs. Fleas and rodents ingest the eggs, which then hatch and live inside them.
- Puppies contract tapeworms by ingesting the fleas or from eating contaminated raw meat.
- Tapeworms look like a string or grain of rice in your puppy’s stool, the fur around the anus, or where your puppy sleeps.
- You might see your puppy ‘scoot’ along the floor from the worm movement inside their anus.
- A fecal test identifies tapeworms. Treatment is an injection or tablet prescribed by your vet.
- Humans can get tapeworms from eating contaminated meats or from the environment.
Whipworms live and lay eggs in your puppy’s intestines and colon. Their bodies resemble a whip, thus their name. The thick end embeds itself in your puppy and causes discomfort.
- Signs of infestation are bloody diarrhea, weight loss, and anemia. Most dogs will not show any symptoms of whipworms, but a large infestation can be very serious to your puppy’s health.
- Puppies get them through direct contact with feces or by ingesting the whipworm eggs or larvae in contaminated areas.
- Fecal tests identify whipworms, and several tests and treatments may be needed.
- Broad-spectrum dewormer is the usual course of treatment.
When should you deworm your puppy?
Any time you suspect your puppy has worms is a good time to deworm, as puppies can be more severely affected than adult dogs. Most puppies require their first deworming around two weeks of age, and many breeders and rescues follow a deworming schedule until puppies are weaned and ready for adoption.
If you're unsure whether your puppy was properly dewormed, schedule a veterinary check-up promptly to begin or continue the deworming series.
What happens after you deworm your puppy?
Most dewormers are safe, with rare severe side effects. However, you may notice:
- Dead worms in your puppy’s feces up to two weeks after deworming, as the worms are expelled.
- Inflammation of the intestines can cause stomach upset, diarrhea, or vomiting immediately after deworming, but these symptoms should resolve in a few days.
If you’re concerned about any side effects, contact your vet promptly.
Tips to prevent worms from reoccurring
- Practise a regular deworming schedule.
- Keep immunizations current.
- Pick up your puppy’s stools right away and use gloves.
- Wash your hands with soap after handling feces, or when around an infected puppy or animal.
- Provide clean drinking water daily.
- Avoid letting your puppy drink from puddles, lakes, and ponds that can harbor feces from other animals, birds, or bugs.
- Limit exposure to areas frequented by large numbers of dogs or animals, any of whom might be infected.
- Don’t skip yearly vet visits—they’ll test for worms.
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