Being a pet owner requires you to be attentive to dangers to your animal companion. Other animals or eating the wrong thing can be a couple of common threats. Many other threats are not as noticeable and come as parasitic worms, and one of the worst for pets is a whipworm infection when your dog plays around the yard.
Whipworms are a common threat, and while you can get rid of them from your pet, it can be tricky killing whipworms in the home yard. It is so hard because these parasites live in the soil and can live there for a considerable amount of time.
In addition, if children play in your yard, they can be infected by these parasites. This leads us to the point of this guide and how to get rid of whipworms in soil. Whipworm infections are tricky to deal with as they tend to live in the soil, yet they are known to climb onto stone paths around your home, thus making infection quicker.
By the end, you’ll know all the effective methods used to get rid of all these parasites and how to stop them around your property, whipworms may be there, yet you’ll know how to deal with severe infections. (Learn How To Remove Grease From Granite Backsplash)
How to Get Whipworms Out of Yard
Whipworms are a stubborn parasite that can make your dog sick and make them feel uncomfortable.
- Make sure your dog gets whipworm treatment.
- Thoroughly remove any dog, fox, or other animal fecal matter from your yard.
- Pave surfaces to stop the spread of whipworm.
- Clean paved surfaces in your yard.
- Apply lime to the soil.
- Remove 6 inches from the topsoil, then reseed your yard.
By using these methods, you can help get rid of whipworms and feel better knowing the parasites have been eliminated.
What Are Whipworms?
Whipworms are parasites that live in the intestinal tract of dogs, foxes, and coyotes.
If your dog ingests whipworm eggs coming from the fecal matter of another infected canine, they are likely to get whipworms.
A dog licking paws after walking on the whipworm-infected ground is how they get whipworms.
Whipworm eggs hatch in the dog’s intestinal tract, and adult worms burrow into the intestinal lining, causing pain, bloody diarrhea, and potential anemia and death.
While inside, this parasitic worm produces eggs, which are passed with your dog’s stool, thus spreading more whipworms.
Even though there are whipworm species that infect humans and cats, they are uncommon in the United States. Your primary concern is your dog’s health.
Effective Whipworm Yard Treatment
Once whipworm infestations are in your yard, they are hard to eliminate. Unhatched whipworm eggs stay dormant for up to 5 years, surviving the heat, cold, and most lawn treatments.
Follow these steps to eliminate whipworms and make your yard safe again.
Treat Dogs For Whipworm Infection
If your dog has whipworm, talk to your vet about the best way to treat it. Whipworm treatment for infected dogs may take over one step but getting rid of a dangerous parasitic infection in your dog is necessary.
After your dog has been treated for an active whipworm infection, start on a regular medicine schedule to keep him from getting worms.
Note that many dewormers can’t be stopped by worm prevention, so you’ll need a wormer that stops a whipworm infection. (Read Do People Eat Bulls)
Maintain a Clean Yard
Inside your dog, the adult whipworms lay eggs. Here you’ll find the problem in the yard, whipworm eggs enter the yard via dog’s feces or if a stray fox defecates in your yard, thus helping new eggs spread into the soil.
Also, whipworm eggs must be 2–4 weeks old before they can cause infection; once they have been passed from your dog, they need to mature after passing from the intestinal tract.
If you clean the yard quickly and often, whipworm eggs can’t get into the soil and mature into dangerous parasites.
Even though it won’t kill the whipworm eggs in your yard, it will stop infected animals from laying more eggs in the soil, which reduces the number of whipworm eggs.
Apply Lime
If you want to prevent whipworm eggs turning into whipworms in your yard, you only need one thing.
Lime is a natural substance you can add to the soil to keep whipworms out of the yard by making them dry out. The substance is also safe for pets and your grass.
Use a spreader to apply lime to the soil. Spread 40 to 50 pounds of lime on a yard that is 1,000 square feet. This will be enough to kill any whipworm eggs in the soil.
When you use lime as the natural substance to kill whipworm eggs, you need dry periods of two weeks, so you can’t water for two weeks, and you don’t want any rain.
If it rains or you water your lawn, the lime won’t get whipworms out of the yard.
- You can use a pesticide spreader for your lime.
- Pour the lime into the spreader container.
- Using your spreader, disperse the lime across the lawn.
- Keep your yard dry for at least two weeks, so the eggs dry out.
- Apply lime during the summer, or when you know you’ll be having hot summers.
- The driest period of hot summers is late July and early August; thus, the best time to kill whipworms in infested lawns.
Disinfect Paved Surfaces
Although whipworm eggs typically inhabit the topsoil in your yard, there is the possibility that they have made their way to your patio, deck, or similar area.
To kill whipworm eggs in these areas, spray the hard surfaces in your yard thoroughly with bleach.
Remove Topsoil
Whipworm eggs are found in the top layer of topsoil, so one sure way to get rid of whipworms in your yard is to remove the top 6 inches of topsoil.
This is an extreme step so you can be sure that the whipworm infestation is gone if you remove the old topsoil, truck in new soil, and reseed your lawn.
Pave Areas to Prevent Whipworms
Once whipworm eggs are in the soil of your yard, they are tough to kill. However, bleach will disinfect paved areas easier, and you won’t find whipworm eggs as often in these areas.
If you have tried to get rid of whipworms but haven’t been successful, your best bet is to pave high-traffic areas to keep your dog from touching the whipworm-infected ground. (Read Can Chickens Eat Peas)
How Long Do Whipworms Live in Soil?
If a whipworm infestation is neglected, it might threaten your
dog’s health for 5 years.
Your best defense is consistently treating your dog with a whipworm dewormer and removing whipworms from your yard using lime or topsoil removal.
Can Whipworms Survive Freezing Temperatures?
Whipworms can survive months of freezing temperatures. Whipworm eggs survive the coldest winters and hottest summers.
How to Treat Your Yard for Whipworms
A clean yard will prevent whipworms from infecting your dog.
The best way to deal with a whipworm infestation is by protecting your dog with a deworming medication against whipworms.
Suppose you are determined to kill the whipworm eggs in the soil, an application of agricultural lime at 40–50 lbs. per 1,000 square feet. You can use a spreader or garden tiller, just ensure the lime is dry for 2 weeks.
Other options to kill whipworm eggs in soil include removing 6 inches of topsoil or paving over infected soil.
Another treatment is to use diatomaceous earth on your lawn once a month after picking up any dog poop. You can reduce the chances of getting whipworms or use strong chemicals such as by adding agricultural lime to your yard’s soil.
How To Prevent Whipworms In Your Yard?
An ounce of prevention is always better than a pound of treatment for whipworms and other pests that can affect dogs.
You wouldn’t believe it, but most times, keeping whipworms out of your yard is not too difficult. Following the advice below, you can prevent these pests from becoming a substantial source of your everyday troubles.
Remove trash as quickly as you can. It will attract pests, and bugs will be drawn to dog or fox droppings the longer you leave them lying around.
Even if you don’t think your lawn has whipworms, spread diatomaceous earth on it once a month. Spreading diatomaceous earth can be the simplest method to tackle the issue before the eggs have a chance to mature and to keep your dog safe.
Canine whipworms impact only dogs and foxes. Therefore, keeping other animals out of it and away from your grass is the simplest method to prevent your dog from becoming infected.
One way to keep the yard clean from other dogs is to use a large fence around your property. A tall, well-built fence prevents Foxes and other pets from quickly accessing (and maybe contaminating) your yard.
These tips below can help you avoid having whipworms and become a significant part of the struggle you face each day.
- Keep a tidy yard to remove whipworms from your yard.
- Pets’ droppings need to be cleaned up after.
- Maintaining a regular mowing schedule will ensure that the eggs of parasites have nowhere to hide.
- Avoid using chemicals as much as possible to get whipworms out of your yard because of the damage they might do.
How Long Can Whipworms Live in Soil?
The longevity of whipworms can be affected by a variety of factors, including temperature, humidity, the accessibility of food, and more. However, if they are not treated, whipworms can live for more than ten years after infection.
Can Whipworms Survive Winter Cold Weather?
Whipworms are hardy creatures that battle through the cold temperatures of winter, so that you may ask, does cold weather kill whipworms?
If you have a dog, you must be familiar with the methods for removing whipworms from the yard. (Learn How To Propagate Moonstone Succulent)
Unfortunately, although if left untreated, they can live for up to five years, they are not harmed by the freezing temperatures that are experienced in the environment.
Because whipworms are resilient to both heat and cold, many ways of dealing with them have a negative impact on getting rid of whipworms from your yard.
