My dog missed heartworm meds & has rice-sized worms. Is it serious?

Question

My 9year old dog has been off his heartwarming pill for about a year now. Can I start him back on it or does he need to see the vet first.? He's taking comfort is right now for fleas but he still has small white rice sized worms in his stool. Is that bad? Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed | Male | neutered | 9 years and 5 months old | 16 lbs

Dr. Davis · Accepted Answer

Yes you should have a heartworm test before starting back on heartworm pills. If Mana has heartworms now they should be treated so he doesn't get damage to his heart. Hopefully the test will be negative and you can start prevention again right away. The worm segments you are seeing are tapeworms. Dogs get these from eating fleas when chewing and itching their skin or eating mice or rodents. The comfortis will control the fleas now but you need to get tapeworm medication from your veterinarian to treat the tapeworms. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Mana.

My dog missed heartworm meds & has rice-sized worms. Is it serious?

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