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Fleas
& Worms
As summer approaches,
common problems that affect your pet unfortunately come with it. These
are
Fleas, Harvest Mites, Ticks & Worms.
Fleas depend on your pets for
survival and feed off
their blood causing irritation and upset. Occasionally new fleas jump
onto your
pet from other pets or the surrounding environment when they go
outside. More
commonly however, new flea infestation occurs when the adult fleas lay
thousands of eggs into the household environment. These develop through
immature stages to produce a new generation of adult fleas ready to
jump on
your pet or bite a passing human! One single flea brought home by your
pet is
able to lay up to 50 eggs a day, or 1500 eggs in the fleas lilfetime.
You
can effectively treat
fleas on your pet by preventing multiplication in your home and
protecting your
pet from flea infestation.
Westmorland Vets recommend
the regular application of Frontline Combo for
both cats and dogs, however we
have a range of other flea products available such as Stronghold & Advocate.
For
more information on
how Frontline Combo works, click on the link above.

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Harvest Mites
are active from late July to mid September, and
cause untold misery for cats, dogs and humans. They will crawl onto any
warm-blooded animal, bite and feed. Once full, they fall off and
complete their
life cycle. Harvest mites (Neotrombicula autumnalis) often go by
different
names such as chiggers, berry bugs and harvest bugs. They are
invertibrates
that are closely related to ticks and spiders. Like ticks they have
several
stages to their life cycle, passing from egg, to larvae, through nymph
before
becoming the adult. It is only the larval form that bites us.
They are bright
orange,
just visible to the naked eye and are often found as cluster in the
animals
paws, although they can attach themselves to any part of the body. Some
dogs,
but particularly cats suffer from the itching. They often groom so hard
as to
damage their skin and lose weight from the scratching and grooming.
Treatment
is difficult, one of the few effective products is Frontline Spray,
however it
does need repeating as it does not last very long. In extreme cases the
animal
is given steroid injections to stop them scratching.
Both Frontline Combo and
Frontline Spray is available over the counter at both surgeries.
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are
less common than fleas in the UK, but can pose
a danger at any time of year. As well as causing nasty lumps or
infection at
the site where they attach to your pet, they can also transmit serious
diseases. Your pets are most likely to be exposed to ticks in areas of
heathland, moorland or woodland, but may also pick up ticks in your own
garden
from infested nests or burrows.
Ticks
belong to the spider family and most in the UK are
“hard ticks” which mean they
have a hard outer shell protecting their body. They are only temporary
parasites but rely on their host for a blood meal, which is essential
to their
survival and development. Their unique sensory organ on their front
legs help
them locate a passing host. They then climb on and move over the
animals skin
to a site where the hair coat is thin, such as the face, ears or
abdomen. Once
the tick has located a suitable site, they attach and secrete a
cement-like
substance anchoring themselves to your pet's skin.
Infection,
abcessation or allergic reactions may develop at the site of attachment
on your
pet. If a tick is removed incorrectly, and mouthparts remain embedded
in the
skin, it can lead to a nasty lump or infection where the tick has been
attached.
Ticks are
second only to mosquitoes throughout the world in transmitting
infectious
diseases to humans and animals. Heavy tick infestations can lead to
serious
blood loss, especially in puppies and kittens. In extreme cases,death
can
occur. Most of the diseases are very rare in the UK,
but due to their potential
seriousness, they are very important when they occur. Do not forget to
mention
to the vet if your pet falls ill,that they have recently been exposed
to ticks.
Treatment
intervals :
Dogs:
Every 8 weeks
Cats:
Every 4 weeks
If
you require any further information regarding Frontline Combo, please
ask a
member of staff and they would be happy to help.
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Worms
It may not always be easy
to tell when your pet has worms. In severe cases the symptoms are
easier to
spot. But in a case of mild infestation, you may simply not know, and
this is
one case where ignorance is far from bliss!
It is a common
problem,
with 6 out of 10 pets in the UK having worms at any one time. The
majority of
worms carried by dogs and cats pose no threat to human health. However
there
are some which can be potentially transmitted to people. Toddlers may
stroke
and cuddle their dogs, they may play in infected sandpits and you will
never
persuade small children to wash their hands before
putting their hands in their mouth!
There are two types of
intestinal worms in the country, roundworms and tapeworms. Roundworms
resemble
strands of spaghetti, up to 10 cm long. Tapeworms look like strings of
rather
flattened rice grains, and can grow up to 60 cm in length. Both types
of worms
can be easily picked up from a hunting cats prey, mice for example
often carry
the infective larval stages. Once eggs or larvae are picked up on your
pets
coat or paws, they can be ingested during grooming, infecting your pet
and
contaminating your home. Tapeworms can be aquired by swallowing
infected fleas
while grooming, these are called the Flea Tapeworm.
Worming
programmes vary
with age and animal. The following are guidelines only and in cases of
doubt or
for pregnant animals, please speak to a vet or nurse.
Westmorland Vets recommend
that you use Drontal Cat and Drontal Plus Tablets. These
are the first
combination wormer developed specifically for dogs and cats. They
control all
the intestinal worms which commonly infect UK pets, with a single,
simple dose.
We
recommend you use
Drontal worming tablets for animals over 6 months old. For animals
under 12
weeks old we recommend Panacur sachets. This kills all roundworms and
some
tapeworms.
Drontal
is a combined
wormer, that kills Roundworm, Tapeworm and Lungworm in one single dose
according to weight.
They are
to be repeated
every 3 months to give maximum protection to the growing animal.
Dosage:
Drontal Cat
– 1 tablet per
4kg bodyweight
Drontal Dog – 1 tablet per
10kg bodywieght
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