Whip worms

[People Whisperer]

My friend just adopted a dog from a shelter. She found out that he has whip worms. We had invited her over on Monday and I am not sure if it is safe for Lily to play with the dog. Does anyone know how contagious they are?

[GoldenPyrs]

Personally, if in doubt I'd probably wait for the introduction, but that's just me.  I hate to have to worm mine any more than necessary b/c of the chemicals.

[People Whisperer]

Thank you! That is exactly what I was thinking! I don't think we will take a chance. Lily is not on any preventatives. ..

[Moni]

 Kind of on the same topic, so I thought I would share...
(*I am not a vet, check with your personal vet, mine was a farm vet and ok'd it for us)

A cool little site about worming.

[sc.trojans]

It is safest to stear clear....and keep in mind that even once the infection is clear in your friend's dog, you will want to avoid that dog's outdoor area and not visit at his house.  Whipworms pass eggs in the dog's feces and these can live in moist soil for many many months, if not years.

So while your dog is not at much risk of getting infection from the other dog even right now - what you want to avoid is having that dog go to the bathroom on your property, or your dog visit his property.  Keep in mind that to get infection, the worms must be ingested so not a huge risk.

[patrick]

Whips are actually fairly common and don't always show up in a stool sample either. Pretty much any place that has had dogs could potentially also have whips in the soil. And you take Lily to a lot of different places.  You could avoid this dog and still get whips elsewhere.  Personally I wouldn't let the possibility of whips prevent me or my dog from going somewhere. It is easily treatable.  As a routine I worm my dogs at least once a year on the Panacur/Safeguard protocol.  If you are on Interceptor that pretty much prevents as well.
I have heard diatomaceous earth is a great all natural wormer- anyone used before?