Pumpkin seeds.... For you, just eat. For cat or dog, grind up and add to soft food. You can't check it out on the Internet too...

Why natural? Praziquantel is one of the safest medications known. Not sure if you can even make a pet toxic on this stuff. Very effective, too, and cheap in pill form (not so cheap as an injectable, though).

We got Drontol Plus from the vet --- $72 for the pills. (2 for our 95# male and 1 1/2 for our 75#) Nothing is cheap when you have large dogs! That price was lots less than on the web sites but very expensive for us!

I heard that Black Walnut extract works - might try that next time. The pumpkin seed idea doesn't seem to work for some.

How about food grade diatomaceous earth? I've used it on people and animals with very good results. It's always seemed to me that the key is to be consistent and use it for a certain period of time. It's cheap and safe.

Here is a link that might be useful: DE for tapeworm

This is what I use to worm my dogs. It is a praziqantel/oxibendazole combination and it kills all worms. It is affordable, and certainly safer and more effective than poisonous home remedies.

These formulations are from Australia, so keep in mind that the label lists the dog's weight in kg's rather than pounds. The website (link below) lists the weight in both metric and American weights for all their products.

I worm my dogs and cats every 3 months (sometimes less frequently in winter months and more often during summer months) as a preventative. If you know or strongly suspect that your dog is infested, it is a good idea to worm once, then a second time 2 weeks later to kill all the stages and eggs of the worms. Also if one animal in the household is infested, you should treat all your pets.

Here is a link that might be useful: Praziquantel based dog wormer

DE does not get rid of tape worms! It is effective for other types of parasites (ear mites) and I use it daily for both dogs. I mix one Tbs. in homemade yogurt for each of the dogs and have done this for over a year now.

I also dust the dogs regularly in the summer and also the carpets every now and then. When we raised chickens we bought DE in 50# bags so I will not run out any time soon.

I'm sorry, I shouldn't have posted. I've had exceptional luck with it personally where intestinal parasites are concerned. Thought it might be worth mentioning. Sorry it hasn't worked for you.

to treat? I still agree with Praziquantel and then if you aren't already using the iverhart with Praziquantel monthly switch to that. iverhart will cover treatment if the dog gets tapes/rounds/heatworm while on it, and assuming you are already giving them a heartworm pill anyways.

DE is still a good idea to kill fleas if there are any in the yard, that's usually how tapeworm gets spread. Not sure where you are from but some areas of the country fleas are just everywhere even if your dogs are on a flea preventative. If fleas are a problem I'd probably recommend an IGR indoors and out, more wallet friendly,quicker and more effective than DE.

We ordered Praziquantel on line so we have it the next time -- we live on 60 acres so any sort of outdoor removal of fleas and ticks won't work. (Our labs travel the acreage daily!!!)

I didn't think we even had fleas around here because I never see them on the dogs or cats, but saw one yesterday on a cat - so they are around - just not in huge numbers. I will dust the cats (7 of them!) with DE. They really hate getting all dusty!) As far as tape worms, the cats live outdoors mostly so will just have to live with them.

If you do not remove the tapeworms from your cats as well as from your dogs periodically, all your animals will be infested with tapeworms.

If there are fleas and yes 60 acres is pretty much impossible and would be ridiculously expensive to try and keep fleas out of, they will reinfest with tapes. I would definitely use the iverhart it should still prevent the tapeworms as long as you can treat them this time. I think that'd be the best bet. Not sure about the cats but at least treating a cat is cheap, not like 100+lb dog

If there's fleas in the yard, and animals with tape, it just takes eating a flea to get it, so a preventative just seems like the easiest way to go about it. Maybe a coat spray as well to help keep the bugs off, i do that with mine, and there are recipes online but I use lavender and mint EO mixed with water, heavily diluted to keep bugs off, sprayed on or sprayed on a towel and rubbed on.

Sorry I don't know anything to treat tapes, most natural things i know of that would treat an animal are low doses of things that are toxic. maybe look into acv, coconut oil, ascorbic acid. All 3 of those can be given to a dog and all are used to treat human parasites naturally so they may help.

This post was edited by Marinewifenc on Tue, Jun 11, 13 at 20:50