With spring and warmer weather just around the corner, many pet guardians start thinking of protecting their pets from fleas, ticks as well as heartworm disease. However, according to the Companion Animal Parasite Council (CAPC), “…heartworm infections continue to increase in numbers and geographic distribution.” While the greatest number of cases are seen in the southeastern US, heartworm infection has been found in dogs in all 50 states. Treating heartworm […]
Heartworm disease has been increasingly reported in recent years in dogs and cats. Transmission occurs through the bites of infected mosquitoes. In some pets, particularly cats, there may be no clinical symptoms observed. In many pets, particularly dogs, increasing respiratory difficulty, including coughing and shortness of breath is often observed. Nonspecific symptoms of lethargy, vomiting and loss of appetite will occur in many pets. In some pets with severe infections, […]
The following post is from Molly Foreman, DVM: What causes heartworm? Heartworm infection is caused by a filarial organism known as Dirofilaria immitis. Mosquitos serve as intermediate hosts which help to spread the disease to animals as the mosquito takes a blood meal and bites your dog or cat. Infections are possible in numerous wild and companion animals. Wild animal reservoirs can include wolves, coyotes, foxes, California gray seals, sea […]
Fortunately, with the increase in use of monthly heartworm preventative medication such as Sentinel or Heartgard, and/or natural herbal alternatives such as black walnut or quassia bark, the incidence of heartworm disease is decreasing. However, in stressful situations and/or in immune or nutritionally compromised patients, heartworm disease is still being diagnosed in most states. In decades past, heartworm was typically treated with a strong arsenical compound known as Caparsolate intravenously in the veterinary […]
One of the most common questions asked of veterinarians is how often pets need to have a heartworm test. Both the American Veterinary Heartworm Society and most veterinarians do recommend yearly heartworm testing. Even though many animal guardians keep their pets on year-round heartworm medication, it is still important to test pets yearly for several reasons. One of the most important reasons for an annual heartworm test is that, even […]
In the prior blog I addressed the question about what an animal guardian should do if they miss a dose of heartworm pet medicine. As mentioned, simply resuming monthly administration is the answer in most cases. The reason why animal guardians should not just pick and choose their own schedule of monthly heartworm medication administration is that it is hard to predict when heartworm transmission season ends or begins in many […]
Topical Revolution is a simple monthly topical parasiticide for many external and internal parasites (fleas and heartworms), and has been increasing in use in recent years because of its many possible potential applications. Unlike many of its competitors like Frontline or Advantage, topical Revolution does require a written prescription from a veterinarian. I have found it most useful in controlling fleas, ticks and ear mites in dogs and cats. Veterinary dermatologists […]
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