Protect Your Pet with Parasite Prevention in Edmond, OK
Parasites come in many forms—some of them are external and feed off of your pet’s blood, while others are internal and live in vital organs or the gastrointestinal tract. These nasty critters do more than cause irritation and discomfort. Many of them carry diseases and some of the parasites themselves cause dangerous conditions. At Edmond East Animal Hospital, pet parasite prevention is a core service, and an essential part of our preventive care packages.
If you have any questions about parasite prevention or are in need of preventatives for your pet, give our animal hospital a call at: (405) 701-9000.
Fleas and Ticks
Fleas and ticks are external parasites that feed off your pet’s blood. Fleas live on and lay eggs in their fur, which often drop off into your carpets, rugs, and pet bedding, where they’ll incubate and mature. Because they spread themselves so wide, fleas can be hard to get rid of. Even if treatments cure your pet of them, with their pervasive nature, there’s a chance they could come back with any lapse in parasite preventatives. Fleas cause your pet to scratch, chew, and bite at themselves recklessly, which in turn, causes inflamed skin, hair loss, and sometimes even allergic dermatitis for sensitive pets.
Ticks do not live in your pet’s fur, but can be found primarily in wooded areas and areas with tall grass. They attach themselves to your pet when they walk by, burrow in their skin, and consume their fill of a blood meal. Then, they drop off, and continue on their way. Ticks cause far less skin irritation than fleas, but that doesn’t mean they are any less of a danger. In fact, ticks contract many tick-borne illnesses including Lyme, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, and Ehrlichiosis. Flea and tick preventatives are the best method for keeping these pests at bay.
Common flea and tick preventatives include:
- Seresto collar
- Bravecto (chew for dogs, topical for cats)
- NexGard (chews for dogs)
- Simparica (chews for dogs)
- Frontline (topical for both cats and dogs)
Heartworms
Unlike fleas and ticks, heartworms are internal parasites. They infect your pet through the bite of an infected mosquito and travel to their heart and the blood vessels in their lungs. Once there, they mature and multiply, often causing no symptoms until the condition is significantly progressed. While dogs are the typical hosts for heartworms, cats are still at risk. There is no cure for a cat with heartworms, so prevention is key.
Common heartworm preventatives include
- Heartgard (chews for dogs)
- Sentinel (tablets for dogs)
- Trifexis (chews for dogs)
- Revolution (topical solution for cats)
You can purchase many of these and others at our online store.
