Parasites that live in the dog’s bed

Your dog’s bed features thousands of microorganisms such as parasites, viruses, bacteria and fungi that sleep every night (and every day) with him. Just as we take care of keeping our bed clean and changing the sheets, it is important to take care of the hygiene of your bed.

Contagion during walks

When they go for a walk, dogs explore all corners, play with other dogs, with sticks, turn around in puddles, lick all kinds of things. We love to see how they have fun, but that also means that when they get home they can carry tons of parasites like fleas, mites and ticks . They will soon end up in the dog’s bed and can even transmit diseases to us humans.

External parasites

Our friend can catch fleas from another dog or animal or simply from the street, taking them home. One of their favorite “hiding places” is the dog’s bed. You have to be meticulous, because they can haunt the house.

A remedy must be taken, respecting the deparasitation calendar and, if your dog scratches a lot, take him to the vet to check that everything is fine.

The mange (fungi)

It is an infection produced by a special group of fungi that infest our dog’s skin, coat and nails. Its symptoms can be redness, itching, hair loss, patchy scabs and nail problems.

Mange is characterized by circular lesions, sometimes red and with scales, with loss of hair in the area.

The spores of this infection can live up to 2 years in the environment, including our dog’s bed. The infection is simple, fast and can spread to other animals and people  living in the same house.

Roundworms and hookworms

In this case they are parasites that live in the digestive system of our dog and feed on the contents of the intestine or, as in the case of hookworms, on blood . Dogs become infected by ingesting other feces infected with eggs or by eating infected animals, such as mice or birds. They can also be transmitted from mother to cub.

Symptoms or signs of infection by these pathogens include uneven weight loss, diarrhea and vomiting, poor coat, cough, or swollen abdomen. 

Salmonella and listeria

They are known as diseases that are transmitted through human food. Today it has been shown that 25% of raw commercial diets favor the presence of these two bacteria.

Our animal can harbor these bacteria in its intestines without showing symptoms and pass it on to the people who live with it. We will eliminate the risk of contagion if we clean the dog’s kennel well, wash our hands and properly store and handle the pet’s food.

Cleaning the dog’s kennel to avoid parasites

The hygiene of our friend’s kennel is very important. To complete it, we will have to pay attention to the label when we buy it. If you can wash it in the washing machine and put it in the dryer, then the problem is practically solved. High temperatures are the ideal tool for eliminating parasites, bacteria and fungi.

Before cleaning our friend’s kennel, it is advisable to vacuum it, to remove hair and residues of encrusted dirt. It will also be important to select a suitable cleaner. Some of them, in fact, can cause allergic reactions in our dog. Therefore, it is  necessary to avoid detergents that contain ammonia or bleach, as these are very harmful products for animals.

The hygiene of our friend

There is a very simple action that we can carry out to eliminate the residues of parasites in our dog once they return from the walk, and that is to wipe their paws with a towel as soon as they get home.

Brushing your dog properly after a walk can also help eliminate any substance that may have adhered to his coat and reduce the frequency of bathing.

Deparasitize

Finally, it is very important to deparasize the animal externally to eliminate fleas and ticks. At the same time, it will also be necessary to use products to deparasize the animal internally. In this way, we will not only protect our four-legged friend, but also ourselves by avoiding contagion.

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