Heartworm illness, which affects dogs, cats, and other pets, is a hazardous ailment. A parasite called heartworms enters your pet by biting a mosquito carrying the disease. Your pet becomes the permanent host of the parasite after being bitten by an infected mosquito.

When a mosquito bites an animal with heartworm infection, this treatable disease is set off. The fact that heartworms dwell in an afflicted animal’s heart, lungs, and blood vessels gives them their name. Heartworm illness most frequently affects dogs, cats, and ferrets as household pets.

Your dog’s symptoms will vary depending on where the heartworm is in its lifecycle. Remember that these symptoms might also be indicators of other ailments.

Heartworm Disease in Pets

Heartworm infection is a dangerous, developing illness. The more quickly disease is discovered, the more likely the animal will recover. When a dog or cat has heartworms, there are very few early symptoms of illness, so it’s crucial to check for them with a heartworm test performed by a veterinarian.

Symptoms

Heartworm disease symptoms include coughing, breathing issues, exhaustion, weight loss, and an enlarged belly. However, these signs are not noticeable unless the disease has poorly advanced and your pet is in critical condition. Heartworm illness has no early warning signs or symptoms.

Each stage of the heartworm disease progression increases the invasiveness of the treatments. This is a significant factor in why early identification is so essential for your dog’s recovery options and capacity. Visit this link for additional information.

Diagnosis

Your pet’s infection status may be determined with a quick blood test. Cats are unfortunately more difficult to diagnose; thus, prevention is always the best course of action. The best method to guarantee your pet’s health is to keep them on a regular heartworm treatment regimen and schedule regular doctor visits.

Your veterinarian will look for Heartworm antigens in your pet’s blood to determine whether they have the condition. About five months after an infected mosquito has bitten your pet, heartworm antigens might be found for the first time. Look up “Dog checkup in Doraville” for the best results.

Treatment

The first thing to realize is that heartworm therapy and prevention vary significantly. Heartworm disease may be prevented, and prevention is easy and effective. Pets already ill because they have contracted an infection are given treatment alternatives.

Heartworm illness treatment might damage your pet’s body and lead to significant health issues. Heartworm treatment is costly and requires numerous vet visits, blood tests, x-rays, hospitalization, and injections. Most patients receiving their first heartworm therapy are hospitalized to receive an adulticide, a drug that eradicates adult heartworms.

Prevention

Heartworm is a condition that is readily avoided. Please make an appointment immediately if your pet is not already on a heartworm preventive medication that your veterinarian has prescribed. When prevention is so easy, there is no need for your pet to be exposed to heartworm disease.

Keeping your pet on a preventative pill is the most effective approach to avoiding heartworm disease. Even if your pet is currently on preventative heartworm medication, it is advised that they undergo an annual heartworm test.

The cost of heartworm prevention is far lower than that of treating the condition after it has advanced. Roundworms, hookworms, and whipworms can all be prevented using certain heartworm prevention drugs. Consult your veterinarian for Heartworm disease prevention tips.