Heartworm Disease and Prevention

Summer weather has finally arrived for the majority of the US and with that warm up comes the dreaded insect, the mosquito. Why do pet owners dread seeing mosquitoes? The American Heartworm Society identifies mosquitoes as the primary carriers and transmitters of heartworm disease, a potentially fatal disease caused by foot-long worms that live in the heart, lung, and other blood vessels of infected pets, including dogs, cats, and other animals. According to the American Heartworm Society, dogs are a ‘natural’ host for heartworms, meaning that the worm lives its entire life cycle within the dog, mating and producing offspring. In cats, most worms do not survive to the adult stage, making them difficult to detect if the cat is infected.

So where does the mosquito fit in? When a mosquito bites a dog (or other animal) that is already infected, the insect picks up the ‘baby’ worms, which in turn develop into the infected stage (this usually happens over a 10 to 14-day time frame). When the mosquito bites another animal, the worms then enter the new host through the bite wound from the mosquito. According to the American Heartworm Society, the ‘baby’ worms take about 6 months to mature into adults and once matured, can live for 5 to 7 years inside a dog and 2 to 3 years inside a cat.

What Are the Symptoms of Heartworm?

According to PetMD.com, there are three classes of heartworm disease and each varies in its severity. Class I (Stage 1) heartworm disease is often asymptomatic, meaning no visible symptoms are present. Class II (Stage 2) heartworm disease has symptoms such as coughing and intolerance to exercise. The most severe, Class III (Stage 3), presents itself as symptoms of anemia, exercise intolerance, fainting spells, and in the most extreme case, heart failure, high blood pressure or hypertension, labored breathing, and an extreme rapid heartbeat.

If you own a cat, often times the symptoms of heartworm are very subtle, ranging from coughing, asthma-like attacks, vomiting, lack of appetite, or weight loss. He/she may also experience difficulty walking, fainting or seizures. Unfortunately, according to the American Heartworm Society, the first sign is sudden collapse or even sudden death.

How Do I Keep My Dog or Cat from Getting Heartworm?

The best way to keep your pet from getting heartworm is putting them on heartworm preventatives such as HeartGuard, Sentinel, Interceptor, Trifexis, etc. as soon as possible. Many veterinarians, mine included, are and have been recommending that our pets be kept on year round heartworm rather than just through the warm season. It is also important to get pets tested every year, even if they are on some kind of prevention. Testing is usually done through bloodwork in dogs but in cats, vets may use an X-ray or ultrasound to detect a heartworm. The sooner heartworm is detected, the better a chance your pet will have of surviving the disease.

What If My Dog or Cat Refuses to Take Their Heartworm Medication?

If you ever wonder why your pet will not take their heartworm medication, take a moment to smell it. It may sound ridiculous, but one of the reasons I switched my dogs from Trifexis to Interceptor was because of the smell. Trifexis has a strong smell that mirrors bug spray. You wouldn’t want to eat something that smells like bug spray would you? I have found that giving medicine in the GREENIES Pill Pockets is the easiest and least frustrating.

Where Can I Purchase Heartworm Medication?

The best place to purchase heartworm medication is from your vet. That way, you can ensure you are getting the proper dosage for your cat or dog based on their size and weight and putting your pet(s) on the best medication for them.

Are There Certain Areas That Have a Higher Risk for Heartworm Disease?

Heartworm disease has been detected in all 50 states. Unfortunately, the risk factors can vary and are almost impossible to predict. It depends on the weather, wind, animals spreading the disease that have not been diagnosed or have been neglected and not received treatments, and certain species of wildlife such as coyotes, wolves, foxes, etc. who are high carriers of heartworm disease.

My Dog Tested Positive for Heartworms, What Do I Do Now?

Unfortunately, not all dogs are completely immune from getting heartworms. If your furry friend tests positive for heartworms, there are treatments available and depending on the stage it is caught in depends on the outcome of the treatment in terms of whether or not it was effective. The recommended steps are as follows:

• Confirm the diagnosis
• Restrict exercise
• Stabilize the disease
• Begin treatment
• After treatment, vets will administer a heartworm test to confirm that all the worms are gone and then recommend prevention

My Cat Is Positive – What Do I Do?

• Diagnosis
• Treatment
  • The heartbreaking reality is that the treatment used to treat heartworms in dogs is not safe for our favorite felines and there is no other approved drug on the market to treat heartworm disease in cats
• Because there is no treatment, it is recommended to monitor your cat and provide veterinary care when needed and continue your monthly preventative to keep new infections (worms) at bay.

Having your pet diagnosed with having heartworm disease does not necessarily mean they have been assigned a death sentence. It is heartbreaking and scary, but the best thing you can do for your furry friends is to keep them on monthly prevention year round to ensure their health and safety.

Has your pet ever been diagnosed with heartworm disease? How do you keep your furry loved one from getting heartworms? Share your experience with us in the comments!