[*Not Suitable for Dinner.]
Eating while surfing the ‘net? You may want to cover your eyes for this next part.
We recovered the Tapeworm, shown below, from a patient and, for our amusement, measured the nasty parasite.
Now, most of us see individual Tapeworm proglottids — the short, rice-like segments that exit a pet’s rear-end one at a time. Each of these segments is filled with eggs, which may be consumed by flea larvae once the proglottid is out in the open. The flea matures, hops onto a pet, is then swallowed by a dog or cat during self-grooming, and the whole process begins again.
In this case, it appears that the entire worm has exited the body. (Lord knows why, since all the nutrition it needs is still inside the cat!)
So now, for your edutainment, we present this 10-centimeter Tapeworm, whom we have positively identified through fingerprint analysis** as being the notorious Lonnie Canklespot Gorman, the Third.
Yowza!!!
Click to enlarge. Photo by Jennifer Miele
**Tapeworms do not actually have fingerprints.
If you’ve seen fleas on your pet, he (or she) could also have Tapeworms. While you may not see anything this big, you may see rice-sized or sesame seed-sized segments on your pet’s rear end, poop, or wherever he’s been sitting. If you suspect your pet has Tapeworms, ask your vet for prescription-strength worming medication today.
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