By Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
(HealthDay)
SATURDAY, Jan. 28, 2023 (HealthDay News) — It’s possible to forestall heartworms in lots of your furry friends — dogs, cats and ferrets, specifically.
Heading off a severe and sometimes deadly illness simply requires regular, year-round preventive treatment through a pill, injection or topical medication, in line with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Heartworms are parasitic worms that may grow to 12 inches in length. The larvae can enter a pet’s body through mosquito bites and move through the bloodstream to contaminate the animal’s heart and lung arteries.
Though the disease can’t spread between pets, mosquitos can proceed to spread it after biting infected pets.
Heartworms in individuals are very rare, the FDA noted.
The early signs of heartworm disease are subtle and may be missed: They include a gentle cough, decreased appetite and weight reduction. Later disease features a persistent cough, tiredness after mild to moderate activity, trouble respiration and a decreased appetite. Heartworm disease can damage the animal’s heart, lungs, liver and kidneys.
Heartworm infections occur year-round and in all 50 states, including in colder climates.
Pets should have the correct amount of heartworm prevention medication of their blood for it to work accurately when mosquitoes emerge. Medications only goal heartworm larvae, not adults.
If you have got a dog: Have your dog tested before starting medication, which may be done with an easy blood test.
Even in case your dog has recurrently taken heartworm medication, testing continues to be essential. That is because no drug is 100% effective and it is important to be certain that the drug has been working and that any delays in giving your dog the medication haven’t left it vulnerable to the disease.
In case your dog becomes infected when not on a heartworm prevention medication and also you resume the medication without testing for heartworms first, you might be putting her or him in peril.
Killing adult heartworms requires using an FDA-approved arsenic-containing drug, a potentially dangerous treatment process.
Indoor pets also need heartworm treatment because mosquitos can find their way inside through open doors and windows.
If you have got a cat: Heartworms don’t survive as well in cats as they do in dogs, but cats are still in danger for heartworm disease, in line with the FDA. Diagnosing the disease is tougher. Along with blood work, testing in cats can include X-rays and ultrasounds.
No FDA-approved treatment for killing adult heartworms exists for cats. This creates additional complications for diagnosing and treating cats, so prevention is significant year-round.
If you have got a ferret: Testing for heartworms in ferrets can also be not as easy, easy or reliable as in dogs. There isn’t any FDA-approved treatment for killing adult heartworms in ferrets either, so prevention is critical.
The FDA suggests talking to your veterinarian about when and the way often to check your pet for heartworms and about which sort of heartworm prevention medication is best in your pet.
Topical treatments might not be best for pets which are around young children, for instance.
Heartworm prevention medications are prescription only. Watch out for websites or stores that can sell you these medications with no prescription, the FDA warned.
SOURCE: U.S. Food and Drug Administration, news release, Jan. 24, 2023
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