Hudson’s muggy climate provides an ideal breeding ground for mosquitoes, and your dog is the perfect heartworm host. Although you might wish to forgo outdoor walks during Florida’s sizzling summers, your furry pal still needs exercise and to go outside to relieve themself, which leaves them vulnerable to heartworm disease. You may think your pet is safe if they stay inside all summer to avoid mosquitoes, but think again.

To help you prevent your pet from contracting heartworm disease, our Advanced Veterinary Care of Pasco team is busting common myths about this parasitic condition. Learn the truth about heartworm disease in pets.

Myth: Heartworm disease is contagious among pets

Truth: Unlike some other parasites, heartworms can’t spread directly among pets because they require a mosquito to complete their life cycle and reach their infective stage. When an infected mosquito bites your pet, they transmit heartworm larvae (i.e., microfilaria), which migrate through the body to mature and reproduce in the large blood vessels surrounding the heart and lungs. Adult heartworms produce microfilaria inside your pet. To develop to the infective stage, a mosquito must ingest them. 

The heartworm’s life cycle is complex, requiring a mosquito to transmit the disease. While a heartworm-positive neighborhood dog may not directly infect your pet, this is an indication that heartworm-infected mosquitoes are in your area and are capable of infecting your four-legged friend.

Myth: Heartworm disease only affects dogs

Truth: Many people think heartworm disease is a canine condition. While heartworms do prefer canine hosts, they have infected myriad mammals such as cats, seals, and people.

Myth: Heartworm disease causes obvious signs in pets

Truth: When a pet contracts heartworms, the larvae need five to six months to reach adulthood. However, the immature heartworms are still causing significant damage as they migrate through the body, although your pet may not exhibit signs for months or years after contracting the parasite. 

The first signs dogs typically exhibit are mild coughing and fatigue after activity. As the disease progresses, the cough becomes more persistent. Your dog will be reluctant to exercise and appear to gain abdominal weight, which is fluid accumulation caused by heart failure.

Heartworm disease is even more difficult to identify in cats, as they often show no signs. Asthma-like signs can develop, with affected cats wheezing, coughing, and having difficulty breathing. Some cats may also vomit, stagger while walking, have seizures, or suddenly collapse. In some cases, the first—and only—heartworm disease sign is death.

Myth: Heartworm disease is rarely fatal in pets

Truth: Left untreated, a dog’s heartworm disease can lead to heart failure and ultimately, death. In cats, a single adult heartworm’s sudden death can produce such an intense inflammatory reaction that the cat also dies.

Myth: Heartworm disease is easy to treat in pets

Truth: Unlike other worms, heartworms can’t be eliminated by giving your pet a simple deworming product. An infected dog must receive a series of arsenic-based compounds, which our Advanced Veterinary Care of Pasco team must inject deep into your pet’s lumbar muscles, which can cause pain and nausea. During the treatment course, which can take several months, you must severely restrict your pet’s exercise, or they can suffer from potentially fatal side effects as the worms die and decompose.

This harsh treatment is also only available for dogs. No heartworm disease treatment has been approved for cats, and our team focuses on supportive care to manage their signs.

Myth: Heartworm prevention for pets is expensive

Truth: When compared with heartworm disease treatment’s cost, monthly heartworm prevention is incredibly economical. If your pet contracts heartworm disease, our team must perform blood work, chest X-rays, and prescribe multiple medications to assess and manage your dog’s condition. If your dog is able to undergo treatment, the injections’ cost is substantial, making the total treatment cost more than a thousand dollars.

In addition to heartworm disease treatment’s financial cost, you need to consider the toll the disease takes on your pet. As soon as your four-legged friend becomes infected, heartworm larvae immediately begin causing permanent, irreversible blood vessel damage and scarring. For less than the cost of a restaurant meal, you can protect your pet from deadly heartworm disease every month.

Heartworms are always active in Hudson, which means your pet needs year-round protection against these mosquito-borne parasites. To request a refill for your pet’s heartworm preventive, call our Advanced Veterinary Care of Pasco team.