I guess this is one of those topics that everyone will never agree on but it is nice that we can share our experiences and views.
Years ago I would automatically worm pups and occasionally I would see a round worm pass. My vets had no problem dispensing worm medicine because I think the majority of vets promote worming at two week intervals. One of the vets I use now is a holistic vet and he does not believe you should worm unless the dog has worms. None of my dogs have had any worms in about the past 5 years but my dogs are raised in my home, not in cages and not on dirt. For those that let their dogs outside it is very necessary to get stool samples checked on your dogs. All moms should be checked and wormed before breeding because roundworms and hookworms can be passed to the pups through the milk. Hookworms can kill a puppy as young as two weeks if the pup has a bad case of them.
Tapeworms are a different story. For a dog or puppy to get tapeworms they have to actually eat a flea that has eaten a tapeworm segment. Worm medicines that kill roundworms and hookworms won't kill tapeworms so if you see the little tapeworm 'rice' segments in the stool you need to get a wormer from the vet. The best preventative for tapeworms is to keep the fleas under control.
You don't have to take your dog or your puppies to the vet to get a stool checked. Most vets will let you drop off a stool sample to be checked.
As for vaccinations, my feeling are that vaccinating before 8 weeks is not best for the puppy and can actually be harmful. |