One in three dog owners believe heartworm is transmitted via birds or food. The truth is heartworm disease is transmitted through infected mosquitoes. (Darn those stingy pests!)
Mind blown? We have a couple more facts for you. Did you know it can take up to six months for the worm larvae to develop into fully-fledged adult heartworms? Yuk!
Despite being called HEARTworm, this disease can affect your pet’s lungs and other organs and can be fatal.
Signs and symptoms of heartworm
It’s not uncommon for our canine chums to show no clinical signs of heartworm during the first few months, as the larvae are still growing. Often, it’s not until the disease progresses that symptoms start to appear. Signs of canine heartworm disease:
- Intolerance to exercise
- Lethargy and weakness
- Dry, persistent cough
- Weight loss
Of course, cats are a bit of a different matter.
Firstly, our feline friends are not a natural host for heartworm, which places them at a much lower risk of infection. But also, if a cat is infected it will, typically, suffer from a short, self-limiting infection.
Nonetheless, cats don’t get off scot-free. The scarcity of symptoms can make it difficult to diagnose heartworm in cats. Furthermore, the disease may be mistaken for feline asthma or another type of respiratory condition.
In cases where symptoms do present, clinical signs can include:
- Intermittent vomiting (sometimes of blood as well as of food)
- Diarrhoea
- Rapid and difficult breathing
- Coughing
- Gagging
Heartworm prevention
Here’s another fact for you. There are treatments available for heartworm in dogs but there are no treatments for heartworm in cats. (There is, however, medicine to address the side effects of heartworm in cats.)
This leads us nicely into a chat about prevention….
There’s no denying, PREVENTION is ALWAYS the BEST CURE. Problem is, due to the life cycle of heartworm larvae, accurate and timely treatment is essential. A survey of Aussie dog owners revealed that while several pooch parents don’t use any heartworm prevention, more than half (64% in fact) of owners administer monthly heartworm treatments after the due date.
Why, exactly, is this a problem?
The issue is that preventative heartworm medication only kills the larvae. The larvae could develop into adult heartworm if the treatment is not administered on time. If this happens, preventative treatment is worthless.
Preventative treatments available
While there are around a dozen preventative medications for canine heartworm, there are just three for our purring pals.
Cat owners can select from:
Millbemax—the only monthly heartworm + worming treatment for cats.
Advocate—a monthly treatment to prevent fleas + heartworm + worms
Revolution—an alternative to Advocate, offering monthly protection against fleas, heartworm and worms.
Dog owners have a greater choice, but perhaps a harder decision due to the multitude of options available! Options include:
Yearly heartworm injection. This is administered via your local vet.
Oral monthly treatment. There are different products available. You can choose between a heartworm-only product or a combination treatment.
Combination treatments are more popular as these take away the hassle of having to administer several different treatments. Common treatments, like Nexgard Spectra and Sentinel, offer protection against heartworm + intestinal worms + fleas.
Topical monthly treatment. Common choices include Revolution and Advocate, which are combination products. They safeguard against fleas, mites and heartworm. (Advocate also offers protection against intestinal worms).
There’s really no one-size-fits-all approach to heartworm prevention. Apart from making certain, you administer the medication on time, of course!
If you have a cat the choice is a little easier. If you’re a pooch parent, it’s worthwhile considering all the different products and alternative regimens to decide which method works best for you and your barking buddy.
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