Does sound like tape worms (Dipylidium caninum.) Any worm segments seen, that are associated with dogs are normally due to tapeworms.
Adult tapeworms can be 6in or more, and lives inside the intestines, hooked to the intestinal wall. The adult worm is made up of many small segments about 1/8 inches (3 mm) long. As the tail end of the worm matures, the terminal segments break off and pass into the stool, and each segment is basically just a sac of tapeworm eggs.
The dog usually becomes infected by eating or swallowing flea larvae that is infected with tape worm eggs, once eaten the egg hatches inside the dog. Effective flea control is important here as the dog can become re-infected even after the initial injection.
If the dog lives in a flea infested environment, i.e. in his bedding etc: or licks / bites his skin as the flea bites, re-infection with tapeworms may occur in as little as two weeks. Because the medication which treats tapeworm infection is so effective, return of the tapeworms is almost always due to re-infection from the environment, if your dog is at high risk then periodic deworming may be necessary.
 |