Anti parasites for your four-legged friend

25 June 2015|In Dog|4 Minutes
antiparassitari per fido

The spring as well as summer, are seasons in which the external parasites of our dogs are most spread: the most common are fleas, ticks, lice, mosquitoes and sandflies. These arthropods (arachnids and insects) start again their breeding season during this period, after the winter break. Prevention is definitely the best way and is essentially based on the use of specific anti parasites for external use, which can kill or simply have a repellent action on these parasites. The problems associated with parasites infestations may differ according to the case.

fleas

Fleas infest the host animal constantly, they feed themselves with his blood to grow and reproduce, performing all their molts on the animal. The flea bite can also trigger allergic reactions, causing skin irritation, since in their saliva there is a specific allergen. Generally, the reaction develops on the back, where fleas most frequently feed themselves. Finally, fleas can also transmit intestinal parasites such as Dipylidium caninum, a cestode that colonizes the intestinal tract in dogs, causing diarrhea or constipation depending on the circumstances, causing always intense anal itching, too.

Ticks

Ticks spend their lives sucking blood, firmly anchoring their rostrum in the skin with a powerful cementing substance. Ticks abandon the animal and hide themselves in the environment to lay their eggs and to make their molt. Therefore it is very important – in case of tick infestation – to thoroughly disinfect the environment in which the dog lives. Ticks transmit a large number of infectious pathogens, including Babesiosis, Rickettsioses and Lyme disease.

Lice

Lice feed themselves with the blood of the hosting animal, mating and laying their eggs on the infested animal. Later these eggs hatch out and larvae grow on the animal. In the external environment lice could not survive for more than 2 or 3 days. Lice mainly hide behind the ears and at the base of the tail, creating severe itching and so that animals begin to scratch.

Mosquitoes

In specific risk areas mosquitoes can be vectors for the transmission of heartworm disease. These parasites live in the bloodstream of dogs and when they become adult they hide in the heart of the animal causing their heart failure.

Sandflies

Sandflies are flying insects similar to mosquitoes, but smaller and quieter, who are unable to travel long distances in the air and suffer in presence of wind. According to geographical zones they can transmit the infectious agent of Leishmaniasis, a very serious disease caused by a protozoan, which in particular harms the kidneys and causes dermatitis around the eyes, on the snout, on the nose, on the ears, on the legs and on the back.

For this reason, during summer time it is better to intensify the protection of our four-legged friends since prevention is certainly the best way. In the market there are various products such as collars, shampoos, powders, sprays and spot-on vials.

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