# Frustration over puppy roundworms



## courtney550 (May 23, 2013)

So our 11-week-old puppy, Butterscotch, has roundworms. We got him from the breeder when he was 7-weeks-old, he had off and on diarrhea for 3 weeks, we brought him to the vet with a stool sample which turned up negative for intestinal worms. We though, "Okay, he must just have a sensitive stomach." Wrong. We gave him his monthly heart worm preventative and out came the intestinal worms the next day.

The vet prescribed 5 doses of Pancur (Fenbendazole) and he takes his last dose today. 

As you can imagine, I feel incredibly uneasy over this whole thing. I feel like our whole house needs to be disinfected and I'm constantly worrying that my boyfriend and I have unknowingly been infected with worms. 

1) They say worms can be passed through saliva. Our puppy is constantly licking, chewing, and exhibiting mouthy behavior. And since we didn't know he had roundworms we let him lick our hands on occasion just because we thought it was cute puppy behavior.

2) They say worm larvae can enter through the skin and leave behind what looks like a "bug bite." Yeah, ever since I got a puppy I've been spending 10x more time outside so of course I'm COVERED in bug bites. So how would I know if it's a regular bug bite or roundworm?

3) Since the first stool sample turned up negative three days before we discovered he had roundworms, how can we every trust that test in the future? I know not every test is going to be 100% but vet bills are expensive and I don't want to spend a fortune on future tests that don't yield accurate results. 

If anyone has experience dealing with roundworms I would absolutely love to hear your advice. I want to enjoy our time with our puppy, not constantly worry about him and us.


----------



## cgriffin (Nov 30, 2011)

Roundworms are not that bad. As long as you don't eat puppy poop, you are fine.

Intestinal worms, don't always show up on a stool sample when tested, may it be that this particular sample did not contain any eggs or eggs were not being actively shed yet. It is really nothing to blame a vet for.

I have actually never heard of a case of somebody getting roundworm through skin contact.

Make sure to wash your hands when handling puppy feces, diligently clean up puppy poop, don't let puppy get to his poop and try to snack, and give him the dewormer. Keep him away from poop of other dogs or animals, him being not fully vaccinated at this stage, you should avoid public areas anyway.

Roundworms are very easily treated and getting rid of. No time to panic.


----------



## courtney550 (May 23, 2013)

Thank you so much for the reply! It really did put my mind at ease. 

Now that we've finished his 5 doses of Panacur, cleaned our place, and thoroughly bathed him, I'm feeling a bit better over the whole thing. Worms are just one of the grossest things in the world. :yuck:


----------

