The cause and effect of heartworm disease

The prevention and treatment

Heartworm disease is an illness that causes lung damage, heart failure and death. This is common on usually dogs, cats, and ferrets. Animals get these heartworm infections from mosquitoes.

The mosquito is the intermediate host. The worms live in the mosquito for a short period to become infectious and cause heartworms. As reported by Pet Talk Magazine, mosquitoes transfer deadly parasites from one pet to another. These parasitic worms live in the blood vessels of the lungs but can travel to the heart in severe cases.

With the humid and hot weather that lingers in Houston year — round, mosquitos are active. Even during Houston’s wintertime, mosquitoes are around even in December and January.

As stated in the American Heartworm Society, infections are not only transmitted through mosquito bites but can also get transmitted from one pet to another. This disease was not present in all 50 states until AMS recently confirmed in 2014. This is due to the transportation of pets from one state to another.

If you shelter your pet indoors, this does not mean they are not at risk. Indoor pets are as much at risk for heartworm infections like outdoor pets. It only takes one mosquito to infect your pet to become diagnosed with heartworm disease.

Dr. Sarah Pella, a Meyerland Animal Clinic vet, talked to us about the importance of heartwoms. She says, “This year alone we have probably treated close to a dozen animals. More often it is animals from shelters or strays since they spend more of their time outside. But we definitely have seen pets that are indoor only and they can still get heartworm disease as well.”

Veterinarians urge pet owners to put their animals on a monthly heartworm prevention. The prevention medication ensures that your pets stay safe from heartworm infections.

Believe it or not, there are lots of pet owners who are not even aware of this pet health issue. For example, pets like Nibbler, a 3-year-old pit bull mixed breed. It wasn’t until he got taken to the vet because he was not eating or playing. He got diagnosed with heartworm disease that same day. That was only because his owner noticed him acting strange and had no choice but to take him to the vet.

“In dogs, it can be a couple of things. Probably half of the dogs that we diagnose are actually asymptomatic with no clinical signs, but they are still infected. It does take quite a bit of disease to have clinical signs. When dogs get diagnosed in cases like these, this is the best candidate for heartworm treatment. Meaning there will hopefully not be any long-term side effects,” Pella says.

This good boy is Nibbler. He is a pit bull mixed breed, who lives in his owner’s backyard (left); Nibbler is 3-years-old and got diagnosed with heartworm disease earlier this year (center); It wasn’t until Nibbler’s owner, Rogelio Arancibia, noticed him acting strange. He saw that Nibbler was not eating, wasn’t playing and was coughing (right).

Although Nibbler enjoys laying in the sun, dogs who live outdoors are more at risk for heartworm infections (left); Nibbler is in great hands. Not only does Arancibia feed, play and watched over Nibbler, but also provides him with his heartworm treatment (center); With the proper heartworm treatment, Nibbler is able to get back to having fun again (right).

“If I would have been informed over the harm mosquitoes could have caused Nibbler, I would have definitely put him on a prevention medication. Now he is on heartworm treatment. Even though the medication is at a very high cost, I know that hopefully it will get rid of most of the worms,” says Arancibia.

The ASPCA claims heartworm treatment in dogs is a multiple-step or three-to-four-month process that involves injections and oral medication to kill the heartworms, as well as prolonged periods of exercise restriction. Since it is very challenging to treat dogs for heartworm disease, it is better to prevent the disease in the first place.

It’s helpful to keep in mind the differences between the cost of prevention and treatment. While having your pet on a monthly prevention, you’re saving almost $200 or more. Since you are preventing the infections, it guarantees your pet against heartworms.

As mentioned before, it’s a common issue for pet owner to not be aware of this disease. Helpful sources like Pet Talk Magazine and ASCPA educate on the health risks their dogs can face.

“I feel like the majority of our clients have at lease heard of heartworm disease. But they don’t necessarily know the magnitude and the fact that it can lead to heart failure and death. So, it’s definitely something that we try to educate all of our clients on. We also want them to know the importance of the medication for preventative measures as well,” said Pella.

With the proper care and research, every pet owner would be able to have their dog or cat with them for a long time. In some rare cases it is possible for pets to survive this disease, but risking their life is not the best solution.