Warding off the monsters that plague pets
Dr Peter Weinstein and Dr Brooke Moore sit down with Dr Adam Christman to talk about the parasites that are harming patients and clients
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On this week's episode of The Vet Blast Podcast, Brooke Moore, VMD, and Peter Weinstein, DVM, MBA, join host Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, to chat about the scary threats to patients: parasites. The 3 doctors discuss all things parasites including how they are spread, the importance of prevention, and studies talking about the threats these monsters have on the clients as we prepare for spooky season.
Below is a partial transcript. Listen to the full podcast for more.
Brooke Moore, VMD: I'll tell you, this is going to sound weird, but I am extremely passionate about parasites. Honestly, they're fascinating creatures, but I'm even more passionate about protecting our pets from them and the first thing I will say is that parasites are gross. Have you ever had an owner say, 'Oh, I'm cool with my dog having worms?' No, that's not going to happen. People don't like their pets to have worms and so, unfortunately, it's super simple for our pets to become infected with these parasites. It could be as simple as them going outside in the backyard to do their business in the morning and they're chugging along and they ingest a parasite egg, and our nematodes are usually going to infect our pets that way. So think about your whipworm, your hookworm, your roundworm, and those suckers traveling through the GI tract and they wreak havoc. Can you say diarrhea, right? I know no one wants to come home from a long day at work to find that in their household.
Other parasites are a little more complicated, like the tapeworm, which requires an intermediate host like a flea, they need a friend right, they need somebody to help them get into our pets. And then the ectoparasites have it pretty easy, right? It can be as simple for them to hitch a ride on your pet when they go outside or go to your friend's apartment, or anything along those lines. So unfortunately, our pets are under constant attack, Adam and so that's why we're here today.
