Black Mouth Cur Health and Maintenance

I am often left thinking about the pups that leave the kennel and go to their new homes. New owners are usually excited and also concerned about whether or not their new pup has been vaccinated or wormed. I always recommend initial and follow up vet visits for the puppies. Many new owners will make the initial vet visit but then tend to let the maintenance visits go to the way side. While I don’t necessarily endorse it, I do suggest that new owners research pet insurance when their puppy is young. No insurance company will cover a dog with preexisting conditions and accidents can happen, but speak to your vet and hear their opinion as well. For optimum Black Mouth Cur health we must be diligent about the dogs maintenance, diet and exercise. Black Mouth Curs are high performance working dogs that need to maintain optimum health for ability and longevity.

My Black Mouth Cur is Eating Grass

Folks often ask “why is my dog eating grass?” Dogs eat grass for a few different reasons and grazing is not one of them. Dogs are not cows nor are they looking for extra nutrition by eating some fresh greens. Many dogs may vomit after eating some grass while others will not. The grass eating is likely an attempt at worming done by the dog. It will not be effective as a de-wormer but the BMC is attempting to soothe the irritation of the worms and vomiting may provide some relief for him. Eating grass can actually be a sign to the owner that the dog needs to be wormed. Another tell tale sign is when the dog drags its hind quarters on the ground. Excessively bad breath (not just doggie breath) can be another sign that your Black Mouth needs worming.

Do I Need to Worm my Black Mouth Cur?

It is a good idea to maintain a regular worming schedule for your BMC. The Black Mouth Cur is a working and hunting breed of dog that exposes itself to many different bugs, worms and parasites. Game animals hunted by our dogs can carry parasites and other critters. If you live in a moist climate and around water sources or high humidity you may have mosquitoes which are the main contributor of heart worms. I perform a monthly worming regimen for our Black Mouth Cur dogs and these are the products we use in order to do this:

Note: Readers are advised to keep in mind we are sharing our experience for the benefit of our owners and this information is not recommended as medical advice ; nor is it a recommendation to skip your regular vet visits.

Ivermectin Injectable – Ivermectin is a medication used to treat many types of parasite infestations. It can be taken orally based on the dosage instructions and size of the animal. Contact your breeder or veterinarian for the exact dosage based on the size of your dog. Ivermectin can be purchased online in many locations and mixed with water in order to administer the medicine orally.

Administration of Ivermectin– Kneel down next to your dog if you are right handed, take your left hand and wrap it over the muzzle of your dog. Hold its lips under it’s teeth with moderate pressure; this will force the dog to open his mouth. At this time you can shoot the medicine down the dogs throat. Close his mouth quickly in order to keep the medicine in. I usually give the dogs a treat after the liquid to make the bad taste go away. The treat also acts as a reward and will associate the worming with a good experience for the dog. We give a dose to our dogs once a month; maybe on the 1st or 15th so it’s easy to remember. Once you have established a regular worming schedule you will not likely see the dog eating grass unless a dose is missed or you are late with your maintenance.

Panacur Suspension Liquid– Panacur is used as a broad spectrum treatment against gastrointestinal parasites like giardia and roundworms. It is a good product for adult dogs as well as puppies and very effective for Black Mouth Cur health and maintenance. The usual dose for adult dogs is 1cc for every 10lbs of dog weight. I like to space out the dose at least 2 weeks from any other medicines. I do one medicine on the 1st of the month and the other on the 15th to space out the doses. This schedule works well and maintains the dogs nicely.

Worming Black Mouth Cur Puppies

Worming the new puppies begins once they have been weaned and after they begin to eat hard food. Our pups are typically wormed 3 times prior to pick up by their new owners. A maintenance program like a regular de worming schedule can help with the size and overall health and well being of your puppy.

Black Mouth Cur Ear and Paw Care

Stay tuned and check back with us often for future blogs about Black Mouth Cur ear and paw care as well as other issues and common occurrences with the BMC. We will be discussing how to properly care for these amazing dogs as well as talking about the products we use in order to do so. Thank you for visiting our site!!!