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Heartworm
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| | Heartworm is a parasite transmitted through the bite of mosquitoes. Adult heartworms live in the pulmonary artery (between the heart and lungs) and the pet shows no symptoms initially. Later, when the disease progresses, coughing and fatigue after exercising may be seen.
Heartworm is occurring more frequently in our area, so you need to protect your pet. It is a very preventable disease, but it is difficult to treat once the pet is infected. If left unchecked, or if it progresses too far, treatment can be costly and sometimes unsuccessful. Heartworm prevention is cheap insurance for a happy and healthy pet.
Prevention is a simple once-a-month oral tablet (available as flavored treats). Read about Heartgard here. We recommend yearly testing for heartworm, just in case your pet may have coughed up the medication or you accidentally forgot to give it. Testing is also performed before starting the medication, because it does not clear a heartworm infection that is already present.
Heartworm most usually infects dogs, but cats can also be infected (even indoor cats). The disease is much more serious in cats, and death is a significant risk factor of the disease. Cats can also get aberrant migration (worms migrating where they normally would not), which can cause seizures and other problems. Ferrets can also get heartworm disease and need special assessment.
Here at NorthPointe Animal Hospital, we can test your dogs and cats for heartworm disease and tailor a heartworm prevention program that's just right for your pet. Please discuss heartworm prevention for ferrets with us, as there is no product made specifically for ferrets. | |
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