Conclusion
Prevention and control
Last week we dealt with specific hookworm treatment (ie which medication could be used to kill/expel these beasties).
‘Prevention,’ as mentioned above, might be too ambitious a concept. Once your dog (or your child) lives in this type of environment, you can be sure that there are worms waiting to invade the body. We may introduce regimes to diminish the possiblity of infection, but a total prevention of invasion is, in all probability, unattainable.
When I refer to “this type of environment” I mean living in Guyana, on the coast, below sea level, with temperatures in the (°C) high twenties (and above) and humidity levels close to a hundred per cent, especially now during the rainy season. These are the conditions that represent the proverbial briar patch for the proliferation of helminths (worms) and other endo-parasties.
You may recall me saying (Pet Corner May 11, 2008) that although ingestion of hookworm larvae is the common mode of infection, puppies can acquire hookworms via the mother’s milk when suckling. In fact, we had also mentioned that an infected pregnant mother can pass on the hookworms to her foetuses while they are still in the womb. Furthermore, hookworm larvae are so aggressive that they can invade the dog by actively penetrating the skin.
Bearing the above in mind, we can use this knowledge to fight the hookworm. For example, if the pregnant bitch can pass on the worm to her puppies in the womb, we must ensure that the bitch is well dewormed prior to her mating and subsequent pregnancy. Also, she should be kept away from contaminated areas during her two months of pregnancy. The pups themselves should be kept (during whelping and suckling) under hygienic conditions.
How does one ensure optimal sanitation? Well, my advice is that the areas in which the dogs inhabit must be ‘cleanable.’ This means that the surface must be conducive to receiving a good washing twice weekly, preferably with a sanitizing chemical. Concrete is a good enough surface.
If we have to use sand/earthen runways, then sodium borate (10 pounds per 100 square feet of area – or, to appease Flavio Comacho, one kg for every two square metres).
Within the context of control, one could also check the dog’s stool (faeces) for hookworm eggs. Carry in a sample of stool to your veterinarian or to a laboratory. Once eggs are discovered, it is clear that the dog has adult worms which are laying those eggs.
You will then introduce the deworming regime immediately. Don’t forget that hookworms are killers.
As part of a control programme, owners should deworm their young dogs relatively frequently.
Puppies should be dewormed at three weeks of age, and the deworming should take place every three weeks. This should continue until the dog reaches five-six months of age or until we are certain (via faecal examination with the help of the microscope) that the dog is free of hookworms. Later, as the dog gets older and becomes more tolerant of a hookworm burden, we may deworm every two-three months.
Let it be a standing rule to deworm all puppies every three weeks during the first four-five months of life. Secondly, any time the dog begins to lose weight, have a (bloody) diarrhoea and show any of the symptoms documented in Pet Corner of May 4, 2008, then take the animal to the veterinarian for ascertainment of the cause, or – if no vet is available – deworm the animal as described in the last week’s Pet Corner.
Next week we will synopsise the facts pertaining to hookworms and offer another author’s documentation on the issue of Hookworm prevention.
