Bladder Worms & Pets

Bladder worms are a rare parasite sometimes seen in pets. It usually only leads to disease in young foxes but can cause your cat or dog painful urination and general discomfort. Treatment is often not necessary, but knowing your pet has been infested can reassure you that they don't have another, more serious issue.

  1. Bladder Worms

    • Types of pet bladder worms include Capillaria plica, which affects dogs, and Capillaria felis cati, which affects cats. These worms are most often found in the eastern part of the United States and are common in Australia. The eggs must actually be ingested by an earthworm to develop into second stage larva. Generally, the worms are transmitted when the pet eats or drinks from an area that was contaminated with urine containing the worm eggs. However, pets can also contract the worms by eating infected earthworms.

    Symptoms

    • Symptoms often go unnoticed by both pet and owner. However, symptoms of bladder worms in pets that sometimes do show up are similar to that of a urinary tract infection: frequent urination, painful urination and discomfort in the bladder. It almost never develops into full-blown disease in cats and dogs but will still cause some discomfort.

    Diagnosis

    • The diagnosis is usually made by observing worm eggs in a urine sample. The eggs are sometimes confused with lungworms or whipworms, so a proper diagnosis is important. Adult worms can only be seen and removed with bladder surgery.

    Treatment

    • Bladder worms in pets has no standard treatment, although some veterinarians will administer ivermectin. Also, worms may be removed through surgery, but your vet may not want to take this route if not completely necessary. Most animals will be in little to no pain.

    Prevention

    • Preventative measures include keeping all pet areas clean, dry and sanitized, keeping areas free of earthworms, preventing pets from ingesting earthworms and separating animals in outdoor kennels from direct contact with the ground, such as by adding wire mesh to the bottom.