Heartworm disease is a pretty common ailment for cats and dogs. This ailment is caused by long spaghetti-like worms inside the hearts of cats and dogs. The worms are spread through bites from infected mosquitoes and pose a threat to your pet all year long, but the risk is greater during warm weather.
Your veterinarian is likely to recommend heartworm prevention as the best way to keep your pet safe. At Danforth Animal Hospital in the Edmond, OK, and Oklahoma City, OK, area we are committed to helping you ensure that your pet has the best health. Contact our team to schedule your pet’s next check-up.
Heartworm Detection
If your dog or cat has heartworm disease, you might notice these symptoms:
- Fatigue after little activity
- Unwilling to exercise
- Mild incessant cough
- Reduced appetite and weight loss
As this ailment progresses, your pet will develop a swollen abdomen from excess fluid. If left untreated, your pet may pass away due to heart failure. You should take your pet to an animal clinic if it shows any of these symptoms.
For accurate heartworm detection, the veterinarian will do a series of blood tests like an antigen test. The antigen test detects the presence of particular proteins that are usually released by adult female heartworms into the pet’s bloodstream.
Heartworm Prevention
Preventing your pet from contracting heartworm disease involves eradicating mosquitoes from your home and neighborhood. This means draining stagnant water pools, fumigation, and using mosquito repellent in your home. You can ask your veterinarian to prescribe prevention medication.
This medication can be chewable or non-chewable oral tablets, topical liquid to be applied on your pet’s skin, or injections to be administered every 6 or 12 months. Some heartworm prevention medications have ingredients that also prevent other intestinal worms and other parasites.
Heartworm Treatment
Melarsomine dihydrochloride is the most common medication for heartworm disease in cats and dogs. This drug contains arsenic, and it can kill adult heartworms. The vet will administer the drug as an injection into the back muscles. Successful heartworm treatment will require multiple visits to the animal clinic.
Do You Need an Animal Hospital in the Edmond, OK, and Oklahoma City, OK Area?
Our veterinarians at Danforth Animal Hospital provide a range of veterinary services to keep cats and dogs protected from a variety of issues, including heartworm disease. Call our team today at (405) 340-1020 to learn more or to schedule an appointment.