New dog!

[Tim Benzedrine]

Well, after having had a rather bad experience with out last dog, we had pretty much decided that we'd have no more.

That lasted about a year and three months. Until my nephew called saying he had a "gift" for me. Suspicious, I asked what it was. "Uh, a dog." was his somewhat sheepish reply. He said that a stray that had wandered in about three days ago reminded him a lot of another dog, the one before we acquired the ill-fated one. It was a good dog that we missed sorely when it suffered what we believed to be a stroke and died.
So agreed to take a look at this one, and it did share some traits with our earlier pet. We agreed that it might just be the sort of dog we wanted, and agreed to adopt it. It's a very good-natured dachshund mix, 4-6 years old (according to the vet).

I'll post a couple pictures later if anybody wants to see them, but my main reason for this post is that I have a question for folks knowledgeable about dogs and their parasites. Not surprisingly, a trip to the vet revealed that the dog has hookworms. Not a big deal, it's common and we've already dosed him with the prescribed Drontal Plus. But something is nagging me. Are hookworms only normally passed thru to humans via feces or where feces have been? There has been no contact with the dogs feces, because it hasn't dropped any yet.(Which was another concern, but the vet said not to be alarmed just yet). We had the dog in the house for a couple nights, do they shed eggs without passing stool? Should I have the house nuked from orbit because it's the only way to be sure? I'm pretty sure that I have little to no reason to be concerned, but a little reassurance never hurts!

 

[tjmi2000]

It seems very unlikely, especially if the dog hasn't defecated. The only concern I would have is if there is a toddler in the house as they are known to routinely put things in their mouths they shouldn't!

 

[Tim Benzedrine]

That shouldn't be an issue. And from what I gather from searching the 'net, I'm not likely to have any problems. Naturally, we are putting him on preventative medicine to avoid future reinfestastions.

The disgusting 'lil horrors are probably well on their way to meeting their maker by now if the meds work as fast as the ones do for roundworms. When I wormed a pup for roundworms a couple years ago, those things were getting passed after merely a few hours.
But after some research, I think my days of going barefoot outdoors are about over!

Parasites squick me right out! Bleahh!

Here are a couple snapshots of the pooch....

 

[codykrr]

But after some research, I think my days of going barefoot outdoors are about over!

why? what happened if you go barefoot?!

 

[Tim Benzedrine]

It's one of the ways that hookworm larvae gain access into the human body. Actually, they can get thru the skin anywhere I suppose, but bare feet make more contact with contaminated grass or soil. This is why you see those "No dogs allowed on beach" signs. The buggers thrive in warm, moist and sandy conditions.
Of course, the area walked upon would have to have been infected at some point, so it isn't as if merely walking barefoot outdoors is a threat. Otherwise, there would be an epidemic of hookworm victims. I was just indulging in a bit of hyperbole with my comment.
Google was quite helpful to me, especially in the "Making my skin crawl" department.

Another interesting bit of hookworm trivia. it seems that back when access to plumbing was more commonly reached by crawling under houses via crawlspaces, plumbers often came in contact with them because dogs and cats would often defecate in such places. The resulting skin irritation from the migrating hookworms was known as "plumber's itch".

This moment og hookworm trivia was brought to you by the letter "Y" for YECCCHHH!

 

[Aundrea]

awwwwwwwwww your dog is a cutie

 

[Tim Benzedrine]

Thanks! He's really sweet-natured too.