PARASITE - An organism which lives on or in another living organism (Host) and obtains its nutrients from them. The parasite feeds on the hosts tissues or body fluids or it may use the hosts own food supply.

ECTOPARASITES - Live on the outside of the host

ENDOPARASITES - Live inside the host

COMMON ECTOPARASITES

FLEAS
Adult fleas feed off the host by biting them and taking a blood meal, the bite can cause an inflammatory reaction and can cause irritation. A heavy infestation can cause anaemia especially in very old or very young animals. Some animals are sensitive to the allergens in flea saliva and can develop lesions are just a few bites. In the cat this is known as miliary dermatitis and in the dog flea allergic dermatitis.

FLEA LIFE CYCLE
The fleas mate on the host animal and the eggs which are smooth drop off and fall into the environment. Between 2 and 14 days the larvae hatch from the eggs, these feed off skin debris, adult flea faeces and other organic matter in the environment. After around a week the larvae spin a cocoon and pupates. The flea can remain in this form until the conditions are perfect for emerging (between 2 weeks and 18 months). The adult flea lives permanently on the host and has a life span of 10 - 20 days.

EGGS - ENVIRONMENTAL
LARVAE - ENVIRONMENTAL
PUPAE - ENVIRONMENTAL
ADULT FLEA - ON THE HOST
Therefore it is important that when you are treating animals for fleas you treat both the animal and it’s environment. Whilst treating a flea infestation owners should also be advised to vacuum daily (An environmental flea spray can be sprayed on the bag to prevent development of the fleas within the bag). The animals bedding should also be washed regularly.

Fleas are the main carrier of tapeworm therefore it is important that an animal carrying fleas is also wormed with a suitable worm treatment.

TICKS

Ticks are acquired by the animal walking in fields (especially long grass) of sheep / cattle or in areas highly populated by wildlife. The ticks jumps onto the host as it passes through the grass, the tick will feed on the host then fall off. Most of the ticks life cycle is carried out off the host.
Ticks can cause direct irritation the host animal and can even transmit some diseases.
They can be removed by either using an anti parasitic drug eg Frontline / Advantix, or by the use of a tick hook.
Care must be taken when removing ticks as they bury their head/mouth parts in the skin of the host. If these are not removed entirely they can cause a reaction and even infection (abscess)

DEMODECTIC MANGE MITES

Demodex mites are normal inhabitants of the skin in small numbers,they live in the hair follicles and transfer from the mother to her pups whilst suckling. This can only occur in the first 3 days of life, demodex mites are therefore not contagious.
Demodex mites in small numbers cause no problems, however in some animals they multiply dramatically, this causes the skin to become scaly, pigmented and infected (usually on head, forelimbs and neck). Demodectic mange is diagnosed by doing deep scrapes of the skin and examining them under a microscope for mites, it is treated by bathing the dog in Aludex every 5 days untill negative skin scrapes are achieved. Very rarely seen in cats.
SARCOPTIC MANGE MITES (FOX MANGE)

Sarcoptic mites lay their eggs in the skin and the larvae then burrow out, the adult mites live on the skins surface. They cause alopecia and crusting of the skin, usually on the ears, elbows, legs and feet. They are highly contagious and are spread by direct and indirect contact, they are also zoonotic (can be passed to humans). Sarcoptes mites are found on dogs and foxes.

COMMON ENDOPARASITES

ROUND WORMS

TOXOCARA CANIS AND TOXOCARA CATI
Round worms are the most common endo parasites.
Toxocara canis affects dogs and is passed out in the faeces. Toxocara canis can cause illness or even blindness if a person is infected, children are most at risk as they are most likely to play in an area contaminated by faeces. Toxacara canis can be passed to the the puppy in the mothers womb and also through the mothers milk. Puppies should be wormed at 2,4,6,8,10,12 and 16 weeks after this dogs should be wormed 2 to 4 times a year. Pregnant bitches should be wormed more frequently to prevent them passing toxacara to their off spring. Toxocara cati affects cats and is only to kittens via the mothers milk, adult cats are infected by eating infected mice etc or through ingesting eggs in the environment. Kittens should be wormed at 5,7,9,11 and 13 weeks after this they should be wormed 2 to 4 times a year.

TAPEWORMS

Tapeworms are segmented parasites they are often described as looking like grains of rice. They are passed on through an intermediate host eg fleas, mice.
DIPYLIDIUM CANINUM is the most common tapeworm of dogs and cats, the intermediate host for dipylidium is the flea.

There are several different treatments for worms including spot on liquid, granules and tablets. It is important that owners are aware that worm treatments will only kill worms present in the animals system at the time of administration, they will not prevent further infection.