How to Prevent Heartworms in Dogs

Heartworms are a big menace in dogs and can cause a great deal of discomfort to your pet. It can also pose serious threat to the life of dog if not treated in time.

What causes heartworms?

Heartworms are caused due to parasites which are transmitted through mosquitoes. Dogs get infected with heartworms by the bite of a single mosquito. There are certain infected mosquitoes that carry the heartworm larvae. If this infected mosquito bites your pet, he can get infested with heartworms. Since it is not only difficult but impossible to tell which mosquito is infected with the heartworm larvae, it is an advisable option to prevent the heartworms rather than treating them. If at all your pet gets infected with heartworms, the earlier the treatment starts, better it is for your dog.

How can I detect Heartworms in my pet?

Once the larvae carrying mosquito bites the dog, it takes few months for it show its symptoms and the larvae to grow into heartworms. If your pet has heartwroms, he will exhibit symptoms such as cough, laziness, heavy breathing, retention of fluid, increase in pulse movement, loss of weight, irregular bowel movements, vomiting and in severe cases death. If you see any of these symptoms in your dog, you must seek the advice of your vet.

Heartworms are not transferred from one dog to another as it is not a communicable disease. It is spread only if an infected mosquito bites the dog.

How to treat Heartworms in your dog?

Heartworm treatment include through an injection, tablets and liquid. Among all the available options, Heartgard Plus is the most widely accepted and the most suitable of all. It contains ivermectin as the active ingredient and id also Heartgard plus generic. It kills and prevents the heartworms from spreading.

Heartgard Plus Chewables are beef flavored tablets which are also palatable for your dog and easy to be administered by your pet. They paralyze the worms causing its death. It should be given every month and if possible on the same date every month. The tablets should be chewed and not allowed to be swallowed by the dog. Care should be taken that you do not miss any dose to make sure that the dog is benefitting from this product. It should be given to puppies only 6 weeks and above. Though this is a safe product, in rare cases it might cause few side effects such as irregular bowel movement, vomiting and seizures in extreme cases. If you observe any extreme side effects, consult your veterinary.