Tapeworm infection is one of the most common situations veterinarians diagnose on a daily basis. Typically, the owner reports seeing "worms" in their dog's stool. It is unusual to find evidence of tapeworms on the typical microscopic examination done in veterinary clinic laboratories.
The immature tapeworm (called a "proglottid") looks kinda like a piece of rice in the stool or even crawling around the dog's rear end. A dog can get a tapeworm from eating a rodent or rabbit but, in my experience, that is quite rare. 99% of the tapeworm infections we see are the result of fleas. Yes, the flea is the vector for the common canine tapeworm. Essentially, the dog bites at a flea, swallows it, and a tapeworm hatches out inside the dog.
So, the first step around treating for tapeworms is to beef up flea control. Flea control is a whole 'nuther topic which I will post on at a later time.
If your dog is diagnosed with tapeworms, there is a special drug that treats them. The common dewormers sold over the counter, normally, won't touch them. The drug is available in an injection (my preferred method) and a tablet.
While the appearance of tapeworms in a dog's stool is repulsive, I am not aware of any research that documents that the parasite actually hurts the dog. On the other hand, who wants a hard-hunting dog to have tapeworms?
