Heartworm symptom may not appear for years
Heartworm disease is a potentially fatal condition caused by parasitic worms living in the heart and pulmonary arteries of dogs.
The disease is spread from one dog to another by mosquitoes, therefore it coincides with the mosquito season. One untreated heartworm positive dog can be the source of infection to a vast number of other dogs in a wide area for many years.
Dogs infected with heartworms can live several years before displaying any symptom.
Some of the most obvious heartworm symptom are cough, exercise intolerance, abnormal lung and heart sounds, weight loss, and difficulty breathing. These clinical signs do not appear until the heartworms have reached the adult stage-anywhere from several months to several years after infection.
If you suspect your dog may have heartworms, seek the advice of your veterinarian immediately. Most dogs, when the disease is detected early, can be successfully treated for heartworms. This makes routine blood testing essential.
Before beginning a prevention program, a blood test must be given by a veterinarian to determine that your pet is not already infected.
The preventative should be administered from early spring until December in colder climates, where mosquitos are absent during winter.
Any climate where there are warm days, most veterinarians recommend that it be taken year round. Most veterinarians recommend annual or biannual screening tests, before you can purchase the prevention medication. This also applies for dogs that are on heartworm preventives.
Treatment for heartworm positive dogs is a long, expensive procedure that is very difficult on the health of the animal being treated.
It is very important to remember that heartworm disease is preventable!
Please do not wait until you see a heartworm symptom. Visit your local pet veterinarian clinic today for an appropriate prevention program for your dog.
A preventive program will not only save you
money, be maybe your dog's life.
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