Heartworms — A detailed Health Talk
Heartworms are a serious problem in dogs. The seriousness of the problem can be estimated from the fact that a worm can grow up to 12 inches in length. Moreover, a dog can have up to 250 worms in its body. These worms reside in the heart, lungs, or blood vessels. They are very difficult to treat but fortunately, they can be prevented easily.
👉 Transmission
Heartworms are transmitted through the bite of an infected mosquito having heartworm larvae. Any place that has mosquitos and pets, it is much likely that your dog will get heartworms. When the dog is bitten by an infected mosquito, it takes around 6 months for the larva to mature into a worm.
An important aspect of the transmission that is frequently asked is “can a dog having heartworms can give it to a healthy dog?” The answer is that transmission only occurs through the bite of an infected mosquito. If a mosquito bites an infected dog and then immediately bites a healthy dog, the disease won’t be transmitted. Because mosquito needs to multiply the larva in his body before he can start spreading the disease.
An important question arises that can heartworms infect humans? The answer to this question is No, they don’t. Heartworms are the problem of dogs, cats, ferrets, and other mammals. Even if a human is bitten by a mosquito having larva, the larva cannot complete its cycle in humans. So, in short, heartworms don’t affect humans.
👉 Symptoms
There are no symptoms shown in the beginning but when the number of worms increases, the following signs appear.
- Cough
- Tiredness
- Reluctance to exercise
- Abnormal lung sounds
👉 Diagnosis of heartworms
As heartworms are present in the internal organs and not topically so they can be diagnosed through signs and symptoms only.
👉 Treatment
The problem of heartworms can be treated through medicine. Most of the time, injectable drugs are given. 2–3 injections of the drug are sufficient to kill the adult worms in the blood vessels. The amount of the dose given depends upon the weight, size of the dog, and the severity of the problem. X-rays and blood tests should be carried out to know the extent of the problem before starting the treatment.
👉 Prevention
As already mentioned, treatment of heartworms is very difficult so prevention is the way to go. You can protect your dog against heartworms through different drugs. Some pills and injectable drugs are available. Topical drugs are also available. Topical drugs and pills give protection for 6 months period. Some pills are given monthly. Injectable drugs with 6-month protection are also available.
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