Large Round Worms

LARGE ROUNDWORMS (TOXOCARA CANIS)

These ascarid worms are found in urban areas throughout the world and can pose a significant zoonotic problem. Like the esophageal worm, T. Canis tends to travel around quite a bit. In fact, T. Canis larva often is thought of as "visceral larva migrans."

Indirect infection is common in pups via the umbilical cord, where the larvae subsequently travel to the liver, then to the lungs where they molt.

Note: If the dam is not cleared of her T. Canis infection, a parasitic reservoir may remain for subsequent pregnancies.

Clinical signs include a dry cough caused by eosinophilic granulomas (nodular inflammatory lesions) in the liver and lungs. Pups may experience pneumonia and a potentially fatal intestinal obstruction or colic.

Quite a few drugs are available as anthelmintics to clear these worms: ivermectin, dichlorvos, fenbendazole, febantel, milbemycin, pyrantel salts and piperazine salts. Many of the modern heartworm and/or flea and tick preventatives also control ascarids.

Naturally, prevention is better than cure. Therefore, the dam should be wormed prior to whelping and both she and the pups should be wormed two to three weeks after the whelping, and every two to three weeks until three months after birth.

These preventive measures also are absolute necessities because of zoonotic concerns. Human children are prone to have worms because they play in the dirt, are less likely to wash their hands after elimination and frequently put their hands in their mouths, thus completing the oral/fecal
pathway for the introduction of worm eggs. In humans, clinical signs run the gamut from asymptomatic to life-threatening, and include flu like symptoms, headache, abdominal cramping ranging from a mild discomfort to a prostration, and even death. In older children, L2 ocular larva migrans may migrate along the optic tract to the retina or ocular humor, where it may be possible to see larvae swimming. The good news is that the eye usually does not have to be removed, but the larvae much be extracted surgically.

Submitted by Joy - excerpts from Dog World Magazine

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