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"Dog Parasites (flea, Tick, Worms, Etc.)"
Dog Parasites (Flea, Tick, Worms, etc.): Page 14
of 26
Heartworms: What are heartworms?
The heartworm got its name from the fact that this parasite actually
inhabits the heart of your dog to which they can grow as long as
eleven inches. In some few cases of heartworm infestation, your dog
may experience breathing difficulty, persistent coughing, weakness and
fatigue. However, when left untreated, your dog can develop heart
failure in an extreme case of heartworm infestation
Mature heartworms create young heartworms called microfilaria. These
young heartworms circulate through your dog's bloodstream during a
mosquito bite. When the mosquito bites your dog, it can ingest these
tiny young heartworms that could later on infect another dog. Once
the mosquito carries the young heartworms to a new dog, the parasites
go through about two more growing stages under the dog's skin, after
which they enter the bloodstream through nearby veins.
After reaching your dog's heart, these tiny heartworms remain there
and make it their new home where they mature and reproduce more tiny
heartworms. This cycle takes an average of six months after the
original mosquito bite.
In order to diagnose the presence of heartworms, your vet checks for
microfilaria in your dog's blood. But the presence of these tiny
heartworms alone may not cause any symptoms of illness.
A few of these parasites are not strong enough to cause any problem
and your dog may not have to go through any kind of treatment and
medication. In fact, only a small percentage of dogs in an area may
become noticeably sick from heartworm. It usually requires a heavy
infestation from a large number of worms for your dog to show any
symptom of illness.
Once your dog show symptoms of this illness however, treatment can be
rather difficult and your dog will most likely be hospitalized. The
drugs used during the treatment are very toxic and harsh on your dog.
For that reason, the best way of preventing heartworm infestation is
through preventive measures.
Your vet will more likely prescribe certain drugs to inhibit young
heartworms while they are just starting to grow under the skin. Most
vets will advise you to give your dog daily doses of this medication
several weeks before the mosquito season starts.
He may also advise you to continue on with the treatment until about
two months after the mosquito season is over. This could mean year
round in some parts of the country where the climate is always mostly
warm.
Your vet may also recommend another form of treatment that is only
given once a month. This treatment kills all the baby heartworms that
have accumulated during that months and thereby preventing the start
of infestation.
Copyright 2006 by Jay Jennings. All rights reserved.
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