04/21/2023
What do Oregon, rain, humidity, cold but starting to warm up, mud, and animals have to do with each other? PARASITES!!!
We have noticed a MASSIVE increase in parasites recently – both external and internal, and across numerous species.
PLEASE get your animals checked for parasites. This includes a good petting (checking for external parasites) AND having a f***l run to check for internal parasites.
The big external parasites we are seeing: Ticks and lice.
-----Ticks carry a vast variety of diseases, and are more common in small animals (dogs and cats). Ticks are more common in wooded areas and areas frequented by deer, but can be picked up anywhere. The nymphs can be as small as a poppy seed and almost impossible to detect, so we recommend preventing ticks rather than trying to hunt for poppy seeds amidst all the hair your cat or dog has. If you live (or travel to, hike, etc.) in an area with ticks, please ensure your pets are on a tick preventative. If you are unsure if your pet’s preventative medication covers ticks, please ask. If you need to start your pet on tick prevention, call to schedule an appointment and we will get them protected! Side note: Ticks can carry disease to humans, as well. If your pet gets a tick and you are needing to remove it – please do so safely! This means do not touch the tick with your fingers – use tweezers or a tick puller. If you are not comfortable removing the tick yourself, let us know and we will help. Second side note: If your animal is already on a tick preventive, they can still get ticks – the preventive is not a repellant, so the tick has to bite the animal in order to die. This means you may still find ticks (hopefully small and dead) on your animal – use the same safety precautions to remove even if it is dead.
-----Lice may not carry diseases like ticks, but they are still a huge issue. They are more common in livestock – cattle, goats, sheep and poultry. They suck blood, so a big enough load can cause anemia. They also bite, which in combination with the simple act of being tiny and tons of them crawling all over, makes an animal very itchy. Please be checking your livestock for lice – if you do not know what lice look like, or are unsure if it is a problem in your herd/flock, let us know and we can schedule an appointment to show you how to determine if lice are an issue and how to treat/prevent the gross buggers.
In terms of internal parasites, there are just too many to name. Regardless, we are seeing EXTREME issues, both in small animals and livestock.
-----Dogs and cats can get roundworms, hookworms, tapeworms, coccidia, giardia and many other intestinal parasites. One of the biggest issues we are seeing currently is giardia. Giardia can be picked up just about anywhere, and can cause intense gastrointestinal upset and diarrhea. Giardia is very easily passed from one animal to another, so quick treatment is key. If your pet is having any GI upset or diarrhea, we need to run some tests to determine best treatment.
-----Cattle can get a host of intestinal parasites, which should be treated before they start to cause any issues. Cattle with high parasite loads can lose weight, be poor-doers, have abortions or unable to keep up with milk supply, diarrhea, etc. Sheep and goats are even more susceptible to intestinal parasites, and if the parasite load is big enough it can be fatal. We have been treating several goats recently who are anemic, losing weight, lethargic, and some are close to dying (a few that hid their symptoms too well have passed away) – all from parasites. We HIGHLY recommend bringing in a herd f***l sample so we can see if the herd needs treated. This is far better before the animals become symptomatic – it is easier to treat when the parasite load is small/minimal and there are no symptoms. If we have seen your herd within the last year, you can drop off a f***l sample and we will call you with results. If we have not seen your herd within the last year (or you would be a new client), we recommend scheduling a farm call to do herd health – we can then collect f***s to run a f***l test to determine the parasite state of the herd and if they need treated.
We love all creatures, and know bugs have their place in the world – however we would really like to have less of them on/in our animals. Let us know if you have any questions or concerns, and let us help your animals be parasite-free this season!