Of my four dogs, only Boz gets a new tapeworm (Dipylidium caninum) every six to twelve months. Unlike the others, he’s a skilled hunter and connoisseur of rodent fare, particularly the cottontails and jackrabbits that flourish on our land, although he’ll settle for a pack rat or a ground squirrel in a pinch. Rodents as well as fleas are tapeworm carriers. Sometimes it’s just not possible to prevent tapeworms, especially if you have a dog like Boz, but you can cut down on them with a few precautions.

Dogs get tapeworms from swallowing or biting at fleas, or from rodents, who harbor tapeworm eggs in their bodies. Tapeworms grow in the small intestine. They have a head that attaches itself to the wall, plus ever-increasing segments filled with eggs that break off and are seen in the feces, or just wriggling at the anal opening, where they look very much like maggots if they’re still alive and white rice kernels when they dry out. Tapeworms can achieve a length of several feet if left untreated. The good news is that these tapeworms are not dangerous, just icky-looking.

Other types of tapeworms infest raw fresh fish and raw meat. They are more dangerous, particularly for humans, who can acquire them through contact with the dog’s feces. The tapeworm Echinococcus granulosus can be found in the southern, western and southwestern United States in sheep, cattle, deer, elk, pigs, horses and other domestic livestock. The best way to prevent these kinds of tapeworm infestations is to keep your dog away from the uncooked meat of these animals and from uncooked fish.

Once your dog has a tapeworm, conventional chemical worming may not kill the head and it could grow a new body and start over again. Dr. Richard Pitcairn, a holistic veterinarian, suggests that a fresh diet (i.e., no commercial pet foods) will build up a dog’s immunity to all parasites, including tapeworms, so that you may not have to resort to chemicals to rid your dog of a tapeworm.

Some natural anti-tapeworm measures that Pitcairn suggests are whole, raw pumpkin seeds kept at room temperature in a sealed container, ground into a fine meal and consumed immediately. He recommends ¼ to 1 teaspoon added to each meal, depending on the dog’s size.

Other tapeworm preventatives are wheat germ oil, ¼ to 1 teaspoon with meals, and vegetable enzymes, which erode the outer coating of the tapeworm. Or add chopped or ground dried figs to meals. Papaya or enzyme supplements containing papain are also useful.

Pitcairn also suggests fasting a dog one day a week with only a raw bone and water or broth to weaken the worms. Castor oil after a day of fasting can flush out the weaker worms (1 teaspoon for puppies to 2 tablespoons for large dogs).

Celeste Yarnall, Ph.D., pet nutritionist, advises adding garlic and raw, fresh veggies to the diet because parasites don’t like veggies or garlic.

Don’t forget to practice good flea control if you want to prevent canine tapeworms. And if your dog, like Boz, likes to hunt, build up his immunity to tapeworms and other parasites with a natural foods diet.