Dallas Animal Clinic

Heartworm Treatment [Continued]

How Long a Pet Can Live with Heartworms

It only takes 6-7 months for these babies to grow up into adults after they are transmitted to an animal, whether they are transmitted directly from another animal or from a mosquito that is carrying the heartworm babies. It would be very effective to treat this health issue in the earliest stages before the babies grow up and begin to reproduce, but the problem is that there are no symptoms of heartworms until they become adults. It is their massive reproduction and spread of infection that causes your dog or cat to experience the negative aspects of heartworms. Simply put, you won't know your dog or cat has heartworms until the pet is severely infected. Once you do realize that your dog or cat is showing symptoms of heartworms, the pet can be diagnosed by using X-rays or blood tests by a Dallas veterinarian clinic.

Protecting Your Pets from Heartworms

To protect your dog or cat from heartworms, follow these heartworm tips:

• Provide your cat or dog with heartworm preventatives. This is over the counter medication that you can give your pet to help be sure that if heartworm babies are transmitted to your pet, they will be killed before each a reproducible stage.
• Puppies should be provided with heartworm preventative medication by the time they are just eight weeks old. Your puppy could acquire heartworms at any time, even while just a pup, so it is very important to provide it with adequate heartworm preventative medication.
• Puppies need to be tested for heartworms when they are seven months old. You can have your puppy tested for heartworms at a Dallas animal clinic. In fact, by taking your puppy to a Dallas veterinarian clinic, you can ask them to schedule regular checkups that include heartworm testing. This will help insure your puppy stays healthy for life and free of heartworms.

How Often Should I Check My Dog or Cat for Heartworms?