Heartworm Disease
It is exactly as its name describes, a dangerous blood-borne, heart-dwelling parasitic worm that is spread by mosquitoes.
When the infective heartworm larvae are deposited in a dog or cat through a mosquito bite, they move through the blood stream and set up camp in the pulmonary arteries and heart, where they mature into adults that can grow to over a foot in length![1] For the duration of their lives (2–3 years in cats and 5–7 years in dogs), they wreck havoc on the animal’s heart and lungs, causing serious damage that can have fatal consequences if left untreated.[7,8]
The number of heartworm and tick-borne disease cases have been on the rise in southern Ontario (especially Toronto) over the past few years.
Heartworm Disease - Plain and Simple. Video by Else-Vet. [11]
The most important reason for prevention, of course, is the severity of the disease once acquired.
Treatment is expensive, hard to come by in Canada and is not always 100% effective. It is also risky—when the medication begins to kill the heartworms they are carried to the lungs and other parts of the body in the animal’s blood, potentially blocking blood vessels and causing allergic reactions.
We highly recommend a check-up and blood test be done before using preventative medications to check for existing heartworms. If your pet has heartworms, introducing a preventative medication could cause serious complications. If your pet has not visited us for a physical examination within the last year, an examination will be necessary before we can dispense any preventative medication.
Read more:
Heartworm Disease in Cats – Ontario Veterinary Medical Association
When should my puppy go on heartworm prevention? – PetPlace
10 Things You Need To Know About Heartworm Before It’s Too Late – BarkPost
Heartworm Life Cycle – American Heartworm Society
Heartworm Life Cycle (video) – Bayer, Youtube