[Karicool745]

Hello, I have had dogs my whole life but now I have moved out and gotten my own puppy and she is 14 weeks and whew it’s a responsibility. I did my dogs initial vet visit 2.5 weeks ago where they gave her a chew that kills heart worms, hook worms etc. I am still in the process of training Bella but today she had an accident on the floor. While cleaning it up I found THIS in her poo?! How terrifying, the vet is closed because it’s Sunday. But right now I need a piece of mind until tomorrow I’m freaking myself out. Does anyone have an idea of what this could be or have you seen it? Thank you

 

[LeoRose]

That's not a usual intestinal parasite, but I don't know what it is. Maybe something she ate?

Does your vet have an after hours phone number, or is there an animal emergency clinic in your area? If so, give them a call, and see if they think it is urgent enough that she be seen today or if it can wait for regular office hours.

 

[Sanne]

Not going to lie, I would be freaking out too! Yikes that looks disgusting, does not look like any parasite I am familiar with. Hopefully it is just something she ate. When we don't know what something is we tend to see it as something else. It might just be something worm shaped. This is really disgusting but I would keep it in something until you can take her in tomorrow if they don't think it is urgent. It will be much easier for the vet to identify if it is some kind of parasite if you have it instead of them trying to figure it out by picture.

 

[Knute]

Agree. It does not look like the typical worm you would find in the dog's stool. I looks more like some sort of caterpillar. I'm surprised the dog's digestive system didn't dissolve it.

FWIW, speak to your Vet about a preventative worming program for your dog. There are multiple worms a dog can pick up like Heart, Whip, Round, Hook and Tape worms. None are good for the dog. Generally speaking a preventative program is less harmful to the dog and easier on the budget than a curative approach.

For your learning, I'd suggest you look up the life cycle of these common worms, methods of contraction and treatment.