20 CIRCULAR 338, U. S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE 



fluid ounce of castor oil. The dog may vomit after treatment, but 

 experiments on many dogs show that the treatment will remove all 

 the ascarids present in practically all cases regardless of vomiting. 

 If the bowels do not move in 4 or 5 hours it is advisable in the case 

 of sick or weak dogs to give another ounce of castor oil. As already 

 noted, it is dangerous to give chenopodium to dogs under certain 

 circumstances, and the services of a veterinarian should be obtained 

 if possible to prevent accidents. The feces passed for the 2 days 

 after treatments for worms of any sort should be carefully collected 

 and burned or buried deep, as they have an unusually high content 

 of worm eggs. 



Either carbon tetrachloride or tetrachlorethylene, given in the same 

 dose and manner as stated for hookworms (p. 23), is also very effective 

 in removing ascarids from dogs, being only a little less effective than 

 chenopodium; either is safer than chenopodium. In cases of heavy 

 ascarid infestation, particularly in puppies, it is advisable to follow 

 either of the above-mentioned drugs in 5 hours by an adequate dose of 

 castor oil to prevent clumping of the ascarids in the intestinal tract 

 with possible obstruction; or a suitable dose of Epsom or Glauber's 

 salt may be given immediately following the treatment. 



Santonin is effective in removing ascarids from dogs when it is 

 properly given. It is usually safe and is especially valuable in the 

 case of animals in which the digestive tract is inflamed. It should 

 be given in the morning, 3 hours before feeding, every day for 5 or 

 6 days in doses of one-fourth to 1 grain, according to the size of the 

 animal, and accompanied by an equal quantity of calomel. 



Oil of chenopodium is twice as toxic for cats as for dogs and should 

 not be used for cats in a dose exceeding 0.05 cubic centimeter for each 

 2.2 pounds of body weight or 0.25 cubic centimeter for an 11-pound 

 cat, immediately preceded or followed by a purgative dose of castor 

 oil. Tetrachlorethylene administered in gelatin capsules in a dose 

 of one-fourth fluid dram (1 cubic centimeter) for an 11-pound cat, 

 followed in 5 hours by an adequate dose of castor oil, is a safe and 

 effective treatment for the removal of ascarids from cats. 



Preventive measures are along the line of sanitation and depend 

 largely on the fact that the infective agents are the worm eggs which 

 pass in the feces. The prompt and thorough removal of these feces 

 from yards and kennels removes the source of infection. Dirt 

 surfaces should be scraped and renewed from time to time, and wooden 

 and concrete structures cleaned with boiling water, soap, and lye, 

 or hot, strong coal-tar creosote solutions, dependence for results 

 being placed primarily on the vigorous and thorough use of a brush. 

 Especial attention should be paid to keeping pups or kittens in clean 

 areas away from infected places and from older animals, and to 

 keeping these older animals free from worms by treatment whenever 

 necessary. 



HOOKWORM INFESTATION (KENNEL ANEMIA) 



Cause. — Dogs are frequently infected in this country with the com- 

 mon dog hookworm, Ancylostoma caninum. This worm (fig. 17) is 

 comparatively small, the male from a little over one- third to one-half 

 inch (9 to 12 millimeters) long, and the female from a little over one- 

 third to almost 1 inch (9 to 21 millimeters) long, and thinner than an 

 ordinary pin. The mouth is armed with six pointed teeth (fig. 18), 



