Tape Worms - Raw Meat

[Montana]

I always knew that raw meat (wild game) can give dogs tape worms.. What I didn't know was that even after being frozen it can still give them tapeworms. A friend was cleaning out his freezer and had a bunch of elk burger that had been in his freezer about 3 years. He gave it to me to feed to my dogs. I'd wormed them all about a month earlier. After feeding the elk burger, I started seeing segments of tapeworms in their stools so I went to my vet and got some worm medication and asked him if meat that had been frozen for 3 years could still give dogs tapeworms and he said yes.... So, from now on it will all be cooked before feeding it!!!!

[Sharon]

Many opinions on this subject.

http://rawfed.com/myths/parasites.html

[Montana]

Interesting link.... All I know is that I fed my dogs raw elk burger and not long afterwards there were tapeworms segments in their stools and I had wormed them all a couple of months earlier.

[ezzy333]

I have never heard of tapeworms being in raw meat as they live in the intestine. It is common to serve raw meat sandwiches in our northern mid-west area and you couldn't do that if there was such a problem. Dogs have eaten raw meat forever without having the problem.

[Sharon]

Interesting link.... All I know is that I fed my dogs raw elk burger and not long afterwards there were tapeworms segments in their stools and I had wormed them all a couple of months earlier.

Tapeworms come from fleas. Is your flea control adequate?

http://www.vcahospitals.com/main/pet-he ... n-dogs/949

[shags]

Yep, can happen

http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?ad ... se.muscle1

We were vacationing in the upper midwest last year, and were warned about eating fish caught in certain lakes because of tapeworm infestations. Not that we were planning on eating our catches raw, but still.....

[Doc E]

There is ONE type of Tapeworm that comes from raw meat.
It's called Echinococcus. The genus Echinococcus includes six species of cyclophyllid tapeworms.

Click here for the Wikipedia article : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echinococcus

.

[Montana]

We have no fleas here.....I've had gundogs since 1973 and have never seen a flea...

Dogs can get tapeworms from wild game such as deer, elk, antelope, etc.... as well as from sheep, pigs, cattle, and rodents. Here's the a link:

http://pets.webmd.com/dogs/dog-tapeworm ... treatments

I knew that dogs could get tapeworms from raw venison, but assumed that meat that had been in the freezer for a couple of years would be safe. My vet said dogs can still get tapeworms after meat has been frozen...cooking the meat makes it safe to feed.

[Sharon]

I'm moving to Montana.

[Montana]

Ha!!! We don't have heartworm or lyme desease either.....yet.

[Doc E]

Ha!!! We don't have heartworm or lyme desease either.....yet.

Lots of those "wonderful" wolves though

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[Sharon]

Ha!!! We don't have heartworm or lyme desease either.....yet.

So you have no mosquitoes or deer ticks or no mosquitoes or ticks carrying disease?

[Brazosvalleyvizslas]

Ha!!! We don't have heartworm or lyme desease either.....yet.

I'm calling BS on this.

[dog dr]

Ha!!! We don't have heartworm or lyme desease either.....yet.

I'm calling BS on this.

Me too. Especially the heartworm part.

[Montana]

Yes, we have mosquitoes and ticks, of course, but no Lyme desease that I'm aware of... As far as Heartworm goes, I can't speak for the entire state as it's huge but I'm up along the Saskatchewan border and I can guarantee you that we have no heartworm.. I asked my vet about it and he said he'd never seen a case of it here.

No wolves here either...yet. They are all in the mountains and we're out on the prairie, thankfully!!! They can keep them there!

[Montana]

Here's a link I found on Heartworms in Montana, for anyone interested...

http://www.montanawildlife.com/projects ... rtworm.htm

[Brazosvalleyvizslas]

Yes, we have mosquitoes and ticks, of course, but no Lyme desease that I'm aware of... As far as Heartworm goes, I can't speak for the entire state as it's huge but I'm up along the Saskatchewan border and I can guarantee you that we have no heartworm.. I asked my vet about it and he said he'd never seen a case of it here.

No wolves here either...yet. They are all in the mountains and we're out on the prairie, thankfully!!! They can keep them there!

I would just suggest to error on the safe side. Vets cant predict what can happen, they didn't see heartworms in Cali until a few years ago but now you better take precautions.

Heartworms are easy to prevent but are an absolute horror if you have to treat them.

[Montana]

Yes, we have mosquitoes and ticks, of course, but no Lyme desease that I'm aware of... As far as Heartworm goes, I can't speak for the entire state as it's huge but I'm up along the Saskatchewan border and I can guarantee you that we have no heartworm.. I asked my vet about it and he said he'd never seen a case of it here.

No wolves here either...yet. They are all in the mountains and we're out on the prairie, thankfully!!! They can keep them there!

I would just suggest to error on the safe side. Vets cant predict what can happen, they didn't see heartworms in Cali until a few years ago but now you better take precautions.

Heartworms are easy to prevent but are an absolute horror if you have to treat them.

I will visit with my vet this week about it....I agree, better to be safe than sorry but I really don't like giving my dogs any more medication than is necessary...

[polmaise]

For anyone interested they are roundworms - each female worm can lay up to 200,000 eggs each day!

round worm.jpg

[Doc E]

Ha!!! We don't have heartworm or lyme desease either.....yet.

I'm calling BS on this.

Me too. Especially the heartworm part.

I don't know about Lyme in MT, but there has to be a period of time where night temperatures don't drop below a certain temp (50* ? ).
Here in WA, that never occurs, thus no heartworms. The only time we use heartworm prevention medication is when we travel out of state to areas that actually do have heartworms.

.

[dog dr]

I have a framed picture/chart/diagram, whatever you want to call it, hanging in the clinic that shows number of heartworm positive dogs reported by veterinarians in each state. Its old, from the late 90s I think. BUT, heartworms have been found in every state in the union, with the exception of Alaska, according to that chart.

[Doc E]

As far as I know, there have been less than a handful of Heartworm cases in WA -- and those dogs were most likely exposed in a different state.

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[slistoe]

I have a framed picture/chart/diagram, whatever you want to call it, hanging in the clinic that shows number of heartworm positive dogs reported by veterinarians in each state. Its old, from the late 90s I think. BUT, heartworms have been found in every state in the union, with the exception of Alaska, according to that chart.

Does that chart identify cases of known transmission within the state or only diagnosed cases? There have been a number of cases of heartworm here in Alberta, but none of them were contracted here - all the dogs had been travelling to locales where heartworm is prevalent - including the interior of BC.

However, it is my understanding that the species of mosquito on which heartworm is dependant is evolving - thus the spread across the continent - and it is only a matter of time before it will be able to withstand the nighttime temps of Washington and Alberta.

[Montana]

Interesting and informative discussion. I think it comes down to a personal choice based on what is happening in your area.. I also suspect it is just a matter of time before Lyme disease and heartworm is common in most areas where they currently are not.

What I find interesting in northcentral Montana is fleas... I've lived here for 37 years now and have never seen a flea on any of my dogs, yet if you shoot a coyote around here they are full of fleas...

[Doc E]

Here's the Heartworm map from 2013.
Click here : http://www.heartwormsociety.org/downloa ... ce-Map.pdf

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[dog dr]

Interesting and informative discussion. I think it comes down to a personal choice based on what is happening in your area.. I also suspect it is just a matter of time before Lyme disease and heartworm is common in most areas where they currently are not.

What I find interesting in northcentral Montana is fleas... I've lived here for 37 years now and have never seen a flea on any of my dogs, yet if you shoot a coyote around here they are full of fleas...

I live and practice in western IL, a perfect environment for fleas. However, I still have a number of clients that tell me their dogs don't get fleas... and that's when I part the hair and show them.

[Montana]

Interesting and informative discussion. I think it comes down to a personal choice based on what is happening in your area.. I also suspect it is just a matter of time before Lyme disease and heartworm is common in most areas where they currently are not.

What I find interesting in northcentral Montana is fleas... I've lived here for 37 years now and have never seen a flea on any of my dogs, yet if you shoot a coyote around here they are full of fleas...

I live and practice in western IL, a perfect environment for fleas. However, I still have a number of clients that tell me their dogs don't get fleas... and that's when I part the hair and show them.

Well, I know quite well what a flea is and when a dog has them... My father bred hounds when I was a kid growing up in Vermont and they had fleas... We fought them continually, as did our neighbors... I think every dog around back then had fleas!!!! I've never seen any sign of fleas on my dogs here in Montana, but I'm going to check them and see if I'm missing something.... I'll let you know!!!

[Sharon]

I don't know about Lyme in MT, but there has to be a period of time where night temperatures don't drop below a certain temp (50* ? ).
Here in WA, that never occurs, thus no heartworms. The only time we use heartworm prevention medication is when we travel out of state to areas that actually do have heartworms.

.[/quote] Doc E.

Just trying to understand this.I may be misunderstanding it. In WA there is no period of time when night temps in Farenheit don't drop below 50 degrees? I'm moving there.

[Doc E]

I don't know about Lyme in MT, but there has to be a period of time where night temperatures don't drop below a certain temp (50* ? ).
Here in WA, that never occurs, thus no heartworms. The only time we use heartworm prevention medication is when we travel out of state to areas that actually do have heartworms.

.

Doc E.

Just trying to understand this.I may be misunderstanding it. In WA there is no period of time when night temps in Farenheit don't drop below 50 degrees? I'm moving there.[/quote]

More the opposite.
I should have said that there are a certain number of days where night time temperatures have to stay above 50.
In WA, even in the middle of summer, most of our night temps are below 50.

Sorry for the confusion.

.

[Sharon]

Ahhhh Got it. Thanks.

[Montana]

I just gave two of my dogs their summer haircut.... Not a flea to be found. Hope it will always stay that way!!!