160 Bear Christiana Rd
Bear, De 19701
302-322-6488
Dr. Jim Berg
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Canine Heartworm Disease
Heartworm disease is spread to your dog by mosquitoes and
can be found everywhere in the United States. After biting another infected
animal, the mosquito carries a microscopic, baby form of the heartworm. When the
mosquito takes a bloodmeal from your pet, it injects the baby worm into your
pet. Over the next several weeks and months, the baby worm goes through a series
of life stages. After about 5-6 months the baby worms have become adults that
are up to 14 inches long and live in your pet's heart and major arteries of the
lungs. Because of the long life cycle, your pet may not show signs of infection
for several years, often times only once permanent damage has occurred. If the
pet does show signs of infection they could include coughing, difficulty
breathing, lethargy, exercise intolerance/tiring easily, fainting, weakness,
and/or abdominal distension to name a few.
Heartworms living in your pet's
heart is a life-threatening situation. There is a treatment available, but it is
very risky because it entails killing the adult worms living within the heart.
However, the good news is that this disease can easily and effectively be
prevented by giving your dog a prescription medication once every 30 days.
Puppies as young as 6 weeks old can be started on heartworm preventative and,
since the medication works by removing any baby worms acquired during the
previous 30 days, the sooner a pet is put on preventative, the better chance we
have of preventing adult heartworms from developing.
There are several
hearworm preventative medicines available:
v Heartguard is a square chewable
treat that looks like beef jerky. This medication also prevents your dog against
two intestinal parasites(roundworms and hookworms). The medicine is for a weight
range and the cubes cannot be halved because the medicine is not mixed
throughout the entire cube. In order for the medication to be absorbed properly
by your pet, the tablet must not be swallowed whole (so if your pet tends to
gulp it/not chew it, you should break it up into small pieces). If your pet is
at a weight that is bordering between two ranges, it is better to go with the
larger dose of medicine to ensure your pet is protected.
v Interceptor is a
beef flavored tablet. This medication also prevents your dog against three
intestinal parasites (roundworms, hookworms, and whipworms). This medicine is
designed for a weight range so you do not need to give ½ tablets if your dog is
at the lower limit of the range. This tablet can either be chewed or
swallowed/"pilled" whole to your dog. If your pet is at a weight that is
bordering between two ranges, it is better to go with the larger dose of
medicine to ensure your pet is protected.
v Sentinel is a tablet that
combines the medication of Interceptor with the medication of Program (See
"Fleas and Ticks" for description of Program). Your dog therefore receives the
benefit of both medications with one tablet given by mouth every 30
days!
Routine blood testing (done in our office using about 3-5 drops of your
dog's blood with results available in 10 minutes) is recommended (and required
by federal law) in order for us to dispense heartworm preventative.
Our
recommendations for heartworm are as follows:
1. Start puppy on heartworm
preventative at 6-8 weeks and no later than 4-5 months old and keep dog on
heartworm preventative year-round.
2. Perform a heartworm test at the time of
your new puppy's next annual physical exam and vaccine appointment.
3.
Routine testing done every other year (as long as the dog is kept on
preventative year-round) to ensure proper absorption of the preventative.
If
a dog is started on preventative after 5 months of age, the dog should be tested
for both the baby worms and the adult worms prior to starting heartworm
preventative. (Putting a dog that already has heartworms on preventative can
result in a severe reaction and the longer the heartworms go undetected, the
more permanent damage can occur to the heart, arteries, and lungs). Since the
worm has intermediate life stages that we cannot detect in the blood tests, the
dog should have another blood test done 6 months after the first to ensure that
no adult worms have developed. After this, the dog can be tested every other
year (as long as the dog is kept on preventative year-round) to ensure proper
absorption of the preventative.
If you miss a dose of your pet's
preventative, give it as soon as you remember and then resume your regular
schedule as before. If you miss more than two doses of preventative, your dog
should be tested before giving another dose and another test should be done 6
months later (see number 4 above).
Heartworm preventative should be continued
during pregnancy and nursing.
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2002
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