Heart Worm – how to protect your pet from this dangerous parasite
Heart worm is one of the biggest dangers your pet faces when spending time outdoors. Despite many reports from vets that their particular environments are free from the threat of heart worm, the fact remains that this particular disease is a global issue. Luckily, prevention is simple, while treatment however, is a drawn-out process, full of potential complications.
How is heart worm transmited?
Heart worm is transmitted through infected mosquito bites exclusively. Prevention is extremely important because it is not possible to know whether or not a mosquito is infected. After being bitten by an infected mosquito, larva require approx. six to seven months to develop into full-grown worms. The worms then enter the arteries surrounding the heart and can grow to a length of approx. 30cm and can live for as long as seven years! Your pet can have as many as 250 of these worms in its body and they are quite easily a deadly threat. There is no other way to transmit heart worm other than through an infected mosquito bite.
What are the symptoms?
It is very difficult to recognize the symptoms of heart worm. At first, they are practically non-existent, next, as the heart worms grow, your pet will experience a slight cough from time to time. After some more time has passed, your furry friend will start to feel fatigue, and will cease to be as active as he/she was before. Once heart worm enters the later stages, your dog will experience trouble breathing and will have fainting spells due to the lack of blood circulation to the brain. Most dogs die within a few years if they are not treated.
How is an infected pet treated?
If a heart worm test comes back positive, depending on the number of worms in your pet’s body and his or her weight, a drug is prescribed which is administered either twice a month or three injections are given at once to kill off the worms. During treatment, your pet will have to rest because once the heart worms begin to die off, they will disintegrate in the body and may cause deadly clots in the arteries. Depending on the severity of your pet’s condition, treatment is administered every 15 days due to the fact that the larva reach adulthood in 14-day cycles. Treatment may last for as long as 7 months. Once your pet is infected, there is no form of prevention that can fight heart worm other than full-on treatment administered with the assistance of your family vet.
What is the best prevention?
We always advise that you do everything you can to protect your four-legged friends. Heart worm prevention is relatively inexpensive, as opposed to treating the illness, which is an extremely exhausting, lengthy and expensive process. There are countless chemical products prescribed to combat heart worm, but more often than not these are dangerous and even life-threatening for your pet. Our advice is to consult with your pet’s doctor and to continuously use the Pet Protector along with the injections prescribed by your vet. Why the Pet Protector? There are many reasons why the Pet Protector is your best form of prevention. First, our product is a 100% natural solution that protects your family member from external parasites, including mosquitoes that transmit heart worm. The Pet Protector provides 4-year protection, which is an extensive period, making it a lot more affordable that other products available.
Heart worm can cause numerous problems for your pet and for this reason you can never be too careful. This is especially important if you are active and spend a lot of time outside with your furry friend. Protect your pet and have him/her regularly tested to ensure a long, happy and healthy life.
