How to Collect a Fecal Sample for your Cat or Dog:

At your pet's annual exam and any time there is a problem like diarrhea, we recommend bringing a stool sample to the appointment.  We will use this sample to run a Fecal Flotation by Centrifugation. This is a highly accurate test that will find 100% of parasite eggs in a sample. We also run a Fecal Giardia test by Elisa which is 95% accurate at finding giardia when it is present in the sample. In cats this test will detect hookworms, roundworms, coccidia, and more.  For dogs the test will additionally detect whipworms.  (According to VIN, the Veterinary Information Network, cats are rarely infected with whipworms and, even when they are, "worm numbers are so small that symptoms hardly ever occur.") Tapeworms are not detected because the large segments that exit the body are too heavy to be detected by this test. Tapeworm segments are best seen by the naked eye.

How to Collect a Fecal Sample for Cats:

The sample should be about the size of four large marbles. Please place the sample in a bag, yogurt container, or other clean disposable container. Some litter is okay.

The sample should be as fresh as possible. Please refrigerate the sample if it will be over 8 hours old. Also, please make sure the sample is not over 24 hours old. One way to do this is to clean the litter box out the night before your appointment and then collect a sample in the morning. This sample should be refrigerated until your appointment time.

How to Collect a Fecal Sample for Dogs:

One way to collect this sample is to take a sandwich bag and turn it inside out. Use the bag to cover your hand like a glove and then collect a sample that is about the size of four large marbles. Another option is to use a tongue depressor to collect the sample that you could then place in a bag, yogurt container, or other clean disposable container.

The sample should be as fresh as possible. Please refrigerate the sample if it will be over 8 hours old. Also, please make sure the sample is not over 24 hours old.

• Please click here http://www.petsandparasites.org/other/guidelines.html to see the Companion Animal Parasite Control’s recommendations for preventing parasites in our pets.