You have to get rid of heart worm, fleas and other parasites in dogs whenever they raise their ugly heads by using the relevant treatment on them. Many medications have come onto the market to defend dogs from heart worms, fleas and other parasites such as hook worms, whip worms, round worms, lice, ticks etc.

Out of the heart worms, fleas and other parasites, fleas can produce a super-sensitive over-reaction in the affected dog. Animals infected with fleas scratch their bodies very vigorously. Frequently the scratching becomes so severe that the skin becomes super-sensitive and dermatitis occurs in the affected areas of skin.

The result of a serious flea infestation is often that the animal can not lie down for long or sleep comfortably because of the persistent flea bites. So, the animal looks as if has some serious skin issues. If the your dog is not properly attended to for these flea bites, there could be a secondary bacterial attack in these sites and there may even be a rotten smell emanating from the affected area of the animal's skin.

You have to inspect your dog closely in order prevent a serious outbreak of fleas. However, it is essential to avoid such a serious infestation as they are extremely upsetting to your pet. Similarly, the skin of the animal has to be checked often for the presence of ticks and lice. In order to do this properly, you need to inspect the dog's skin by separating the dog's hairs. The easiest way to achieve this is by slowly back-combing or ruffling the animal's hair.

Often, if your pet is anaemic, and he is not infested with fleas, you need to rule out hookworm. Symptoms of hookworm are anaemia, loose stools and a pot belly. The dog's owner may recognize these symptoms themselves, however, to be honest, the dog needs to undergo a routine health examination at the vet's involving faecal and hematological examinations.

There are many products available commercially, some of which are helpful for dealing with all these conditions by a single dose. Drugs like ivermectin are highly effective and are obtainable in injection, oral and solution forms. The latter should be applied directly on the dog's skin. These drugs can induce the prevention of the above conditions too.

Therefore, the best strategy to follow is to keep a sharp eye on your dog. This could most easily be carried out at bath time and when you are grooming him. You can use an anti-flea and anti-tick shampoo, which will keep these nuisances under control, if used as stated on the bottle. Couple this with regular grooming with a lice comb and the use of a flea collar should keep your pet tick, lice, and flea free.