Help, Tapeworms? What does this mean?

Does your kittie use the litterbox?
 
If yes, you can check the stool of the cat, tapewom looks like white rice.

Do you have rabbits or mice in your area? If I remember correctly, rodents can transmit the flea larvae that host tapeworm eggs. Even if your dog didn't contact any other animals, the fleas can still be in the yard or park where your dog plays. All he has to do is eat one. Advantage will keep fleas from living on your dog, but won't kill tapeworms if he eats the fleas.

If you want, you can try spraying your yard to help kill any fleas.

I would probably trea tthe cat, too. Just to be on the safe side. You can check the little box for thosse tell-tale rice-like tapeworm segments if you want, but the worms may not have matured yet.

I'll definitely check my cats litter box, but if he has the tapeworms they probably haven't matured yet. I think what I will do is call the vet and ask if I can bring my cat in with the dog on the 4th and have him checked too.
I don't want to spray the yard if I don't have to, because we are selling the house and moving pretty soon, hopefully before the end of january.
We don't have any rabbits around, but come to think of it, one of my roomates did see a mouse in the house about a month ago..No one ever caught it though so it could still sneaking around our laundry room.
Our laundry room has a door that leads to the backyard, and then there is a door that closes the laundry room off from the rest of the house. So I've had that door closed since they saw the mouse, to keep him away from the rest of the house, but I guess fleas fit under door cracks quite nicely.
I am just really worried that If I don't get this corrected immediately that it will escalate into something life threatening for my animals. []

Don't feel bad about your puppy getting worms.  You would be amazed on how fleas can get into your house.  My cat got fleas and he's strictly inside.  The only thing I can think of is because one hitched a ride into the house.  The bad part is that only one flea is all it takes.
 
To add what [link>http://forum.dog.com/asp/showProfile.asp?memid=20519]jenhuedepohl[/link] said.  IF I remember correctly (if not someone will be by later to correct me), it can take a few weeks for the larva to hatch.  This is why they give them one pill now, and then one pill 3 weeks from now to kill any that remain. 
 
I would just keep putting on your flea meds religously.  I would even suggest getting some Revolution for your kitty (especially if your roommates don't treat their animals). 

What does revolution do??
 

Revolution is flea meds for cats.  You just apply the liquid on the back of their neck like normal flea medication once a month.  The neat thing about Revolution is that it also has meds mixed in with the flea meds for heartworms.  So you get 2 meds in one application!  []
 
ETA:  I just read your post again, and I forgot to add that Revolution kills fleas that are on the cat's skin (the fleas bite the cat and then die from injesting the medication).  This in NO way will prevent them from getting tapeworms if they eat a flea, but it will help just in case they start living on your cat.

To get tapeworms a dog only has to ingest a single flea... a tapeworm doesn't always indicate a flea infestation.

To get tapeworms a dog only has to ingest a single flea... a tapeworm doesn't always indicate a flea infestation.

 
Exactly, and it could be from any animal outside, dead or alive........

I feel like a bad pet owner.

 
NONSENSE! you are taking care of the situation, even further asking about it. you most definitly are a good, responsible pet owner.
 
 don't worry yourself too much, all of the above is great advice and information so i dont have too much to add on that front. i just wanted to let you know that it really isn't all that bad or big of a deal. my dog had tapeworms when we got him and after treatment has not had any recurrances or side effects resulting from it. just make sure to watch the anal area and any bedding or crates for the little sticky segments, when they dry they look like rice.

Sorry I'm adding this a bit late, but maybe I can clarify a bit more.
 
First off -- tape worms would have to get super super bad and the animal has to have them a LONG LONG time for them to be life-threatening.  Can happen but not likely since you seem really responsible.
 
All it takes to get tapes is to 'ingest' ONE flea.  Keeping Advantage or Frontline on both cat and dog is your best defense -- because those kill on contact, so the flea doesn't have to hang around long enough to 'bite' the dog.  Revolution only kills when the flea *bites* the animal.  Besides which (and for my pups this is the big huge deal) Revolution is a pesticide that lives IN the bloodstream all month long and you *hope* it is gone by the time you give the next dose.  IN other words, it is 'systemic'.
 
I don't put anything on my animals that stays systemic (goes into the blood stream and stays) -- they just don't need to be exposed to chemicals like that long term.
 
Frontline and Advantage stay on the skin (and Frontline in the hair follicles/skin pores) but it doesn't absorb into the body.
 
Of all the various kinds of parasites tapes are the least dangerous but probably THE grossest.  It takes months (like 3 or 6 months usually) before the tapeworm parasite matures and becomes long enough for the segments to break off to be 'seen' in the poop.  And you only 'catch' them when you catch a segment in the poop -- it's not always there which is why they missed it on the prior fecal.
 
If you can snag a *fresh* fecal sample from the kitty box you might not even have to take it in (keep it refrigerated til time to go) -- or just tell the vet you have a cat also and the vet may simply give you meds for the cat to be treated 'in case'. 
 
Tapes 'happen'  -- you aren't a bad pet owner at all.  They are just super gross to we humans.
 
If you want additional protection against other kinds of parasites, rather than the systemic Revolution, you might want to consider Interceptor which is milbemycin.  It's safer than ivermectin (which is in HeartGuard) so it's dosed a bit stronger so even tho it's only in the body for 24 hours, it kills a wider range of parasites (from heartworm microfilaria to round, hook and whip worms.).
 
Also a note -- tapes can be tough to totally 'kill'.  Most tape meds will cause the segments to be 'shed' however, the head of the tapeworm can be so deeply imbedded into the intestinal wall that it may take more than one treatment to get rid of it.  Again -- no reflection on you -- it's just the nature of the thing.