Cushing's Disease in Dogs – American Kennel Club
VETERINARY VIEWPOINTS: Prevention Is Key In Heartworm Disease
As we all anticipate warmer weather and enjoying the outdoors with our pets, it is important to remember to protect your dogs from parasites. One of the parasites that dogs need protection from is Heartworms.
Heartworms are parasitic worms that infect dogs and live in the pulmonary artery, the vessel that takes blood from the heart to the lungs, and sometimes in the heart itself. They are spread by mosquito bites and can be found in all 50 states.
Dogs infected with heartworms may not show any symptoms early on. As the disease progresses, they may develop symptoms which can include weight loss, lethargy, coughing, difficulty breathing, and heart failure. Chronic, untreated heartworm disease can be fatal.
All dogs are at risk of becoming infected with heartworms, but there are a few things that put your pet at increased risk. These include:
• Not being on heartworm prevention
• Living in or visiting the southern and southeastern united states
• Spending more time outside, especially in warmer months when mosquitoes are more active
• Being near areas where mosquito populations are high (e.G., near bodies of water or stagnant water, which is where mosquitoes reproduce)
While certain environmental factors can increase a dog's risk of exposure to mosquitoes and contraction of heartworms, it is important to note that avoiding these environmental factors is not enough to prevent heartworm infection. Mosquitoes do come indoors. And, even though Oklahoma has cold winters, we do have enough unseasonably warm days during the winter for mosquitoes to be active and spread heartworms.
The best thing you can do to protect your dog from heartworms is to keep them on year-round heartworm prevention. All heartworm prevention medications are in the same drug class, macrocyclic lactones. However, these medications come in a variety of formulations to meet your needs and your pet's lifestyle. They can be monthly oral products, monthly topical products, or injections given either every 6 or 12 months.
Heartworm infections can be treated, but even with treatment there can be lasting impacts from the infection. And treatment is difficult, time consuming, and often costly. It is certainly easier on you and your pet, and usually cheaper, to prevent heartworm infection than it is to treat it.
If you have questions about heartworm disease, prevention, or treatment, the veterinarians at OSU Veterinary Teaching Hospital are happy to help. We can be reached at 405-744-700.
Veterinary Viewpoints is produced by Oklahoma State University's College of Veterinary Medicine.
April Is Heartworm Awareness Month; Here's How To Prevent The Disease In Your Pet
HOUSTON (KIAH) — April is Heartworm Awareness Month and with the weather changing, the disease is more common in our pets especially with mosquitos popping up.
The common signs of heartworms in dogs and cats are:
Treatment options and preventative measures are available, however, there is no treatment for cats. There are several questions to ask your veterinarian as far as preventing heartworms. Start by asking which medicine would be best for your dog.
Sadly, heartworm positive dogs are the first to be killed in crowded shelters.
"If you have the ability to help a heartworm-positive pet by adopting or fostering, please bring one home when you can," Katribe said. "The process of treating heartworm is not as difficult as it used to be, and you'll be helping a pet that really needs you."
Owner Survey Finds Alarming Attitudes Towards Parasite Prevention
The Banfield survey found nearly 40% of dog and cat owners don't believe their pet is at risk of getting heartworm
Przemyslaw Iciak / stock.Adobe.Com
In honor of National Heartworm Prevention Month, Banfield Pet Hospital has released the results from its pet owner survey, examining the publics' attitudes towards parasite prevention. The veterinary network surveyed 1,000 dog and cat owners within the United States and analyzed pet medical records for insights into seasonal and local trends. The key findings include the following:1
These numbers can be disappointing for veterinary professionals because the rate of heartworm disease is high and trending up, even though this disease is preventable with year-round preventatives.1,2 "Research has shown rates of heartworm in pets have continued to trend upward nationwide, despite prevention being generally safer, easier and less expensive than treating an existing infection," said Alea Harrison, DVM, chief medical officer of Banfield Pet Hospital, in the company release.1
All states are at risk of heartworm. According to the American Heartworm Society (AHS), rates have continued to trend upward in both heartworm "hot spots" and in locales where heartworm cases were once rare. However, southern states should be more vigilant and cautious. The leading states for heartworm incidence continue to be those in and adjacent to the lower Mississippi Delta.2
"The states with the highest density of diagnosed heartworm cases in the latest survey were Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, Alabama, and Arkansas," says AHS president Jennifer Rizzo, DVM. "Meanwhile, Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee and the Carolinas all saw expansions of high-density areas on our incidence map."2
Washington, Oregon, Kansas, North Dakota, Massachusetts, and Connecticut were all once rare for heartworm disease, however they have now had an increase in prevalence.2 This demonstrates that it is safer to maintain cautious when it comes to parasite prevention, rather than making a wrongful assumption about your state's prevalence.
According to Banfield's records database,1 Delaware had a 299% increase in rates of heartworm in the past five years, while Montana had a 140% increase, and Nevada had a 101% increase to make the top 3 list.
Overall, Banfield reported finding a 47% increase in felines diagnosed with heartworms in the past 5 years.1 These data reports and owner surveys show the importance for continued client education on the necessity of parasite prevention and especially education surrounding the need for year-round upkeep.
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