Heartworm preventative medication is given once a month beginning in the spring and continuing until early December. Before starting the preventative, a blood test is performed to make sure that your pet has not already contracted the disease. Fortunately this test will also check for Lyme Disease and Ehrlichia (another disease transmitted by ticks). Puppies under 6 months of age do not need to be tested for heartworms before being put on the preventative medication the first year.

Heartworm disease can be diagnosed by a blood test performed at our hospital. If the test is positive we will first run a series of tests, including electrocardiographs, radiographs, and blood and urine tests to evaluate how much damage the heartworms have done to the heart and the rest of the body. If the dog is healthy enough to undergo treatment we will then begin treating with a series of injections to kill the adult heartworms.  

Text Box: Infective larvae enter the dog’s body through the mosquito bite, and they continue to develop over the next few months. They migrate through the dog’s tissues, eventually reaching the heart and lungs. Once in the dog’s heart, the worms may grow to between 7 and 11 inches in length and can cause significant damage to the heart and lungs. If left untreated, heartworm disease may result in death. - Merial Animal Health Company

Heartworms are worms that live in the right side of the heart and the pulmonary arteries (the arteries that take blood from the heart to the lungs). These are large worms, the size of a piece of spaghetti. They make it difficult for the heart to pump blood and eventually lead to heart failure and death. Dogs contract heartworm by being bitten by a mosquito carrying the heartworm larvae.

Heartworm Disease and Prevention

Phone: (585) 388-1070

Fax: (585) 388-0202

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