![]() When the egg case breaks open, these eggs are scattered about in hopes that a larval flea will eat one by accident. They are filled with thousands of individual tapeworm eggs. These pearls (proglotids) are really an egg case. The telltale segments are generally found on the stool – not in it. Only the last pearls break off and leave the body when they are ripe (gravid) with, or after, a bowl movement. These hooks anchor the tapeworm to the lining of the pet’s small intestine. You can click on the link next to the picture at the top of this page or here to expand it and see the tapeworm and its life cycle close up.Įvery tapeworm has an oval head (scolex) to which are attached a group of hooks – similar to fishhooks (its rostellum). The common tapeworm, Dipylidium is about 12-18 inches long when it is mature. Some are many feet long, other types, only a few segments long. All tapeworms are segmented – like a long string of pearls. There are other, less common tapeworms, there is a bit about them at the end of this article. Fleas are the intermediate host of the most common tapeworm of pets, Dipylidium caninum, and dogs and cats are its final host. The second type of animal (the final host, i.e., your pet) is the one in which the tapeworm can mature in the intestine and develop its eggs. One (the intermediate host) does no more than carry the parasite around to a new home. Unlike the other common intestinal worm of pets, like roundworms and hookworms, tapeworms require two different types of animals (hosts) to complete their complicated life cycle. Luckily, the symptoms they cause are not severe, and your veterinarian has excellent ways to help you eliminate them. Tapeworm parasites are quite a common in dogs and cats. Tapeworms in Your Dog And Cat And What To Do About Them Ron Hines DVM PhD
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |