Parkway Animal Hospital's

PET OWNER'S GUIDE TO

Canine Heartworm Disease

HEARTWORM FACTS

Adult Heartworms live in the right side of the heart.

They are 6-14 inches long. Several hundred may be present in the dog!
Heartworms impair blood circulation, resulting in damage to the heart, lungs, liver, and kidneys. Serious damage may occur, even before outward clinical signs are detected by the owner.
Advanced signs include difficult breathing, coughing, tiring easily, listlessness, and loss of weight, and fainting.
Heartworms are found throughout the United States. Year round in this region of the country.

Mosquitoes spread heartworms:

After ingesting blood from and infected dog, the MICROFILARIA (“baby” heartworms) is transmitted to another dog or cat when the mosquito bites it. Once the heartworms mature, they begin reproducing additional microfilaria. This MICROFILARIA IS NOT DANGEROUS TO THE INFECTED DOG. A mosquito must ingest the microfilaria before they can become infectious. The mosquito must then inject the heartworm larvae into the susceptible pet. It takes 3 to 6 months for adult heartworms to develop in a dog after an infected mosquito bites it. Heartworms occur in all breeds of large and small, shorthaired and longhaired, inside-dogs and outside-dogs. Heartworms also now are known to infect 10-14% of the cat population. Diagnosis of Heartworms is by blood test to detect the “baby” heartworms in the blood. A special test to detect “occult heartworm disease” is sometimes required when heartworms are suspected, even if the initial screening test is negative, because a small number of dogs may have adult heartworms but yet have no microfilaria in the bloodstream. Treatment is very SUCCESSFUL when the disease is detected early. The adult worms are killed with an inject able drug given in a series of 2 injections. A few days later, the worms begin to die, and are carried by way of the bloodstream to the lungs where they lodge in small blood vessels. They slowly decompose and are absorbed by the body over a period of several months. Other injections are required to kill the microfilaria (baby heartworms) at a later time.

HEARTWORMS CAN BE PREVENTED!!!!

We strongly recommend oral once a month or injectable once every 6 months heartworm preventives, which also aid in the prevention of other internal parasites. It should be given all year long routine testing for Heartworms once each year is needed by all dogs in endemic areas such as North Carolina.

WHICH TYPE OF HEARTWORM PREVENTATIVE IS BEST FOR MY DOG?

1. Interceptor: This is a chewable tablet given once monthly. Interceptor protects against heartworm infection as well as 3 intestinal parasites – hookworms, roundworms, and whipworms. Because of its broad spectrum of parasite control and rare incidence of side effects, Interceptor is our #1 choice of heartworm preventative.

2. Heartgard: This is a chewable treat also given once a month. Heartguard protects against heartworm infection as well as hookworms and roundworms. This is a good choice of heartworm preventative for those dogs that don’t tolerate or don’t like the taste of Interceptor. It is our preventative of choice for dogs whose owners may have forgotten or delayed the heartworm preventative, as it has a slightly longer duration of protection than Interceptor. It is also safe to use in dogs that already have heartworm disease so they don’t continue to develop more heartworms.

Note: Parkway Animal Hospital offers a Pet Reminder refrigerator magnet beeper that will help you to remember the monthly administration of heartworm preventative.

3. Proheart: This is an injectable heartworm preventative given subcutaneously (under the skin) in the shoulder area once every 6 months. Proheart protects against heartworm disease and hookworms. It is a good choice of heartworm preventative for owners who frequently ‘forget’ or have difficulty administering the monthly preventative. In addition, Parkway Animal Hospital will mail you a reminder postcard every 6 months when your dog is due for its next injection.

Addition heartworm information may be found here: http://www.heartwormsociety.org/

OUR MISSION:

"We embrace the art of healing and the science of medicine to enrich the lives of our animal companions.
We support you in making informed decisions that allow your pet to enjoy wellness as long as possible.
Our hospital team inspires an atmosphere of compassion and respect for our patients, our clients, and for one another."