Internal parasites

The different types of intestinal worms in dogs and cats: roundworms, flatworms, protozoa...

These worms and parasites are classified into families, including :

Roundworms. These include Trichurus and Ankylostoma, but the most common are Ascaris, which look like spaghetti about ten centimetres long. Ascaris are intestinal worms often found in puppies and kittens, as they can pass into the mother's milk, but also through the wall of the placenta.

Flatworms, also known as "tapeworms" because they reproduce alone. The most common is clearly Dipylidium. But Taenia and Echinococcus are also common. Taenia segments, easily recognized by their white rice-like shape, frequently appear in the stool or around the anus.

Giardia. Giardiosis is a parasitic disease caused by Giardia duodenalis (or intestinalis). Note: this is not a worm, but a protozoan, invisible to the naked eye because it consists of a single cell.

Coccidis with Isospora. Coccidiosis is also a parasitic pathology caused by a protozoan that is invisible to the naked eye, and not by intestinal worms. 

Anything can be diagnosed by a saddle analysis!

Contamination:

Animals contaminate each other by licking or ingesting parasites found in other dog faeces or soiled food.

Cats can catch roundworms simply by coming into contact with contaminated soil or by ingesting prey. Ex: for kittens, through mother's milk.

Cats can contract tapeworms by ingesting infested fleas when they hunt and eat their prey, or ingest raw meat. That's why it's best to avoid giving meat or raw viscera to your cat.

There are several "entry points" for worms. Infestation can occur through larvae-infested feces, by ingesting parasitized rodents, or percutaneously when larvae pass through the skin of a cat's pads, for example.

Treatment:

After a stool analysis, your veterinarian will give you the right treatment for the worms that have infested your pet. He will be given a corresponding dewormer.