Finding out your dog has worms is an unpleasant experience for you and your furry friend.
Unfortunately, the infestation might go further than your dog.
Sometimes the worms spread to your yard, and it becomes a huge problem.
There is a vicious cycle of your dog being reinfected in these cases.
It also puts children who play in the yard at risk of getting infected.
Luckily, there are many methods to treat your yard for dog worms and keep everyone safe.
Treating your yard for dog worms involves using chemical sprays or Diatomaceous Earth to kill the larvae and eggs of the worms. Removing worms from the yard takes multiple applications and upkeep. Keeping your dog on preventative medicine helps to keep the yard from getting infested.
If your yard is infested with internal parasites from your dog, you’re likely feeling overwhelmed and a little skeeved out by the parasites.
Have no fear; we’ll walk you through everything you need to know to treat your yard for dog worms.
Table of Contents
Treating Your Yard For Dog Worms
We all love our darling dogs and want the best for them.
Part of this includes keeping them free of intestinal parasites.
Intestinal parasites are an unpleasant reality for dog owners, but it may come as no surprise taking care of dogs is sometimes a messy business.
Dogs, especially in their puppy years, have a knack for getting into and eating things they are not supposed to.
Sometimes this is, unfortunately, poop.
Dogs get intestinal worms from eating infected feces and transporting them from the poop to their intestines.
There are many signs of your dog having worms, but the most common symptoms include:
- Diarrhea
- Weight Loss
- Abdominal Pain
- Lethargy
- Vomiting
- Swollen Belly
- Severe Anemia
- Damage To Intestinal Lining
Keeping Pets Healthy
It’s always sad to see our pets uncomfortable, and we should always do our best to keep them happy and healthy.
This is especially true when they are very young.
Puppies are more likely to get worm infestations than adult dogs, but all dogs need to be on some sort of parasite prevention.
Your veterinarian will have the best recommendation for your dog and will often conduct routine deworming of your puppy when they are young.
Once your dog has intestinal worms, there is a chance of the worms infesting your yard.
Most parasitic worms require a living host to thrive and reproduce.
Some types are capable of living in your dirt which sometimes becomes a much larger issue.
Finding worms in your yard is an extremely unpleasant discovery.
You’ll need to take action to remedy the situation and treat your yard for dog worms.
Fortunately, there are many options to kill off the worms in your yard.
It helps to understand the cycle of parasitic worms to understand how pest control products work.
Intestinal worms start as eggs in feces.
When they hatch, they grow into larvae and ultimately into adult worms.
Adult worms are found in the small intestines of cats and dogs and infect humans.
Not only is this disturbing, but the worms also cause health problems for their hosts.
Part of treating your yard for dog worms involves keeping it clean and clear of feces.
Since the eggs exist in the feces, removing them regularly helps keep the worms in the yard down.
You’ll also need to find a high-quality pest control solution to use to treat the yard.
If you are looking into more natural methods, you’ll need to consider the added work involved.
Once you treat the yard, you’ll want to keep your pet safe with preventative medication and routinely treat your yard to prohibit reinfestation.
How To Use Pest Control Spray To Remove Worms From Yard
One of the most effective ways to treat your yard for dog worms is to use a high-quality pest control spray.
Many people employ a local pest control company to do the job, but it is also a relatively easy task to do with the right equipment and products.
Eggs from dog worms are resilient creatures capable of surviving a variety of factors.
Getting a high-quality product is a great place to start.
You’ll want to get one rated to kill dog worms like this to ensure the product will fix your problem.
Some people use diluted bleach to treat concrete or patio areas, but there is little evidence of this working on dirt in yards.
Make Sure Your Dog Is Treated For Worms
Before you begin treating your yard, you’ll want to start with the source of the problem.
Dogs not protected from parasites act as hosts to bring the worms into your yard.
Putting them on quality preventative medication prescribed by your veterinarian helps protect them and your yard from worm infestation.
Not only will this keep your yard worm-free, but it will also keep your dog healthy and happy.
If you’ve ever been around a dog with worms, you know how miserable they seem to be.
Remove Dog Poop And Excess Debris
Next, you’ll need to pick up all the dog feces in your yard.
This is how the worms originated, and you’ll need to clean up the yard for the spray to be as effective as possible.
Spraying more of the soil where the worms live helps get optimal results.
Make sure you watch your dog while they are outside.
This way, you’re able to pick up the poop right after your dog finishes their business.
Follow Product Instructions For Proper Ratios
Sometimes we like to ditch the manual and wing it, but pest control spray is not a good idea.
Improper ratios may harm your grass or be too diluted to achieve the desired results of killing the worms.
Many products also require multiple applications after a certain amount of time.
Make sure to follow directions to a tee to successfully get rid of dog worms in your yard.
Some sprays are harmful to pets and children and should be used with extreme care.
We recommend using a pet and child safe spray or keeping kids and pets out of the yard until the treatment is complete.
Attach To Hose And Spray Yard Or Fill Sprayer
Some pest control spray products have attachments to screw a hose on to make applications easy.
If your chosen pest control product does not come with an applicator, use a sprayer like this to pour the solution into and spray the yard.
These sprayers are great to use, especially if your hose does not reach all the affected areas of your yard.
Treat Again In 2-10 Days
Treat again within a few days of the first application during active infestation of dog worms in your yard.
Parasitic worms start their life cycle as eggs.
They then into larvae and ultimately into adult worms.
The first treatment may kill the larvae and adults, but some unhatched parasite eggs may survive the treatment.
Treating again after a few days allows those worm eggs time to hatch but doesn’t allow enough time for them to reproduce again.
Treatment time may vary based on your specific product, so make sure you follow the labels correctly.
Conduct Routine Treatments For Prevention
I’m sure it only takes one infestation of dog worms in your yard to make you never want to have to deal with them again.
Conducting routine treatments for dog worm prevention in your yard every month or so will keep the worms from establishing a foothold again.
You’ll need to enact some other habits to keep the dog worms at bay, including:
- Keeping dogs on parasite prevention medication.
- Regularly pick up poop as soon as your dog does their business.
Natural Methods To Treat Your Yard For Dog Worms
Those with gardens, small children, or other pets roaming our yards may be hesitant to use a chemical pest control spray.
Firstly, I will say parasitic worms can make both humans through skin contact and other animals its host, so make sure to keep everyone out of the yard until the problem is fixed.
Fortunately, many pest control products seek to use safe, plant-based ingredients to protect our pets and children.
One popular ingredient in pet-safe pest control natural products is cedar oil.
The essential oil is very effective at killing insects and parasites.
Diatomaceous Earth is a great option if you would like to check out another natural method for treating your yard for dog worms.
Natural methods sometimes take a little more effort than chemical options.
To use Diatomaceous Earth, you’ll need to make a habit of regularly picking up your dog’s poop and sprinkling the powder over the area.
Diatomaceous Earth is a fine powder used as a natural pest control.
The powder works by drying out the exoskeleton of parasitic insects and subsequently killing them.
It is particularly effective against worms and larvae as they are more vulnerable to the drying effects of the powder.
It takes multiple applications and diligent consistency to treat your yard with Diatomaceous Earth, but it may be the only option if chemicals aren’t a good fit for you.
How To Prevent A Reinfestation Of Worms In Your Yard
Once you have your yard treated for dog worms, you’ll want to keep it from happening again.
Luckily it is easy to reduce the risk of worm infection in your yard with some simple steps and habits.
Internal parasites are an unpleasant business.
No one should have to continuously deal with the problem.
Follow these tips to make sure the first time you deal with dog worms in your yard is the last.
Keep Your Dogs On Worm Prevention
The best way to prohibit a reinfestation of worms in your dog is to immediately get them on preventative medication and keep them on it.
Most worms die without a live host, and protecting your dog is of utmost importance.
Parasitic worms wreak havoc on your dog’s intestinal system and cause massive amounts of discomfort for them.
Taking your dog to the vet helps keep your pet safe from severe infections.
Clinical signs of severe infections in infected animals include bloody diarrhea, severe anemia, and more.
Your vet will assess the clinical signs and conduct a fecal exam.
Fecal examinations help to determine the severity of the dog.
Pick Up Poop Promptly
Picking up poop promptly in your yard is one of the best ways to keep your yard free of worms.
The less time your dog’s worm-infested poop spends on the soil, the better.
Picking up and maintaining a clean environment in your yard will greatly diminish the likelihood of having a full-blown worm infestation in your yard.
Make it a habit to pick up every time your dog does business.
Parasitic worms travel as worm eggs in feces.
Removing the poop will keep your yard worm-free.
Check out these ways to pick up dog poop without scooping.
Limit Shady Spots In The Yard
Sunshine helps to kill larvae and eggs of parasitic worms in your yard.
One way to prevent worms from reproducing fervently, limit the shady spots in the yard.
This may involve cutting back branches and bushes.
Some dogs prefer the privacy of a shady spot but encouraging them to do their business in sunnier spots helps to prohibit hookworm infestation.
How Do Dogs Get Dog Worms
There are quite a few different types of parasitic worms affecting dogs.
The most common parasites are hookworms, roundworms, and tapeworms.
All of them are unpleasant discoveries, but how do dogs get them?
Most infestations occur from dogs ingesting the worms through eating infected feces or soil.
The parasitic worms are capable of causing a lot of damage to our dogs and should be taken care of immediately.
Determining whether your dog has worms involves collecting stool samples for your vet to assess.
Knowing the type of worm helps with treatment.
One of the most common types of worm to invest yards are hookworms.
Hookworms are unique in their ability to live in the soil without an intermediate host.
Most other worms affecting dogs need a live host to stay alive and reproduce.
This is why hookworm infestations get out of hand without proper treatment of your dog and the yard.
Another unpleasant fact about hookworms is their ability to infect humans as well.
If you have children playing in the yard where a hookworm-infected dog has defecated, you’ll need to keep the children out of the yard until the infestation has been taken care of.