Only YOU can prevent Heartworm Disease (in your dog or cat)

Last month, I had a client present a dog to me for weight loss and a slight cough.  During our testing, we were able to determine that his dog had heartworm disease.  Unfortunately, the dog also developed kidney failure because of the heartworm disease.  We discussed options with the owner.  The best option was going to cost about $1,200.  The cost ended up being too much, and we had to euthanize his dog. 

Heartworm disease is a mosquito borne disease that can be fatal to cats and dogs.  OK, I said it.  It can be fatal.  Even if I can treat it, it is a costly disease in terms of money and damage to your pet’s body.  Heartworm disease can be scary, but it does not need to be scary.  It needs to be acknowledged and dealt with.

If not dealt with, mosquitoes can pass the disease into your dog or cat.  In dogs, the worm will grow inside the blood vessels of the lungs.  These worms resemble thick spaghetti and block the proper blood flow through the lungs and the heart.  Death comes from heart failure, but is usually preceded by weight loss, decreased energy, and finally a cough.

When dealt with, the disease can be prevented or treated should prevention fail.  Every month, your pet should be given a medication to prevent heartworm disease.  Each year, a simple blood test is performed to verify that no infection has occurred within the past year.  If the test is positive, your veterinarian can describe the treatment options.

The American Heartworm Society recommends year-round use of heartworm prevention.  Even in Wisconsin, year-round heartworm prevention is necessary.  The medication, mosquitoes, and weather all impact the most important timing of giving the preventatives.  A pharmacist with a PhD in entomology may be able to determine which months to skip, but it is nearly impossible for me to determine when to skip.  My only suggestion is to keep administering the medication every month.  If you only give medication from April 1 to December 1, you run a serious risk of not protecting your dog.  I have already diagnosed 3 dogs with heartworm disease this year that have followed similar recommendations.

I do have a few additional words of caution. 

There are many good heartworm preventatives currently on the market.  Please do not confuse flea/tick prevention with heartworm prevention.  Medications that are NOT heartworm prevention, including:  Frontline, Vectra, Hartz, Advantage, Advantixx.  I have heard many clients confuse these flea/tick preventions with the heartworm preventions.

Heartworm prevention is a prescription medication.  Anytime that you can acquire this medication without a prescription from your veterinarian, you should consider it suspect.  Do not try to save a few dollars by buying medication without a prescription – you simply should have no confidence that this medication is not counterfeit.

At Franksville Veterinary Clinic, we carry several heartworm preventatives that have been proven effective against heartworm disease.  We also treat heartworm disease should that become necessary, but hopefully we can protect your pet so we never have to deal with another heartworm infection.