Contrary
to popular belief, the appearance of heartworm disease is not only
characteristic of the Mediterranean countries any longer. As recently the
incidence rates has been high in Hungary as well, owners and SPCAs have to be
able to protect the animals from parasites and preclude the possibility of the
animal being infected - a procedure the cost of which can be quite high.
What is heartworm?
Heartworm (Dirofilaria immitis) is a parasitic roundworm that is spread from host to host through the bites of mosquitoes, which are intermediate hosts and vectors. They
transmit larvae into the host’s body by their bites. Larvae then mature into
adult worms in the host’s pulmonal artery and heart, and begin to breed,
producing larvae that are released into the blood. An adult heartworm can grow to be about 25 cm long.
It is important to stress that heartworm is
different from the parasitic worms of the skin!
Diagnosis
In the early stages of the disease, dogs are mostly asymptomatic. The longer the infection
persists, the more likely the symptoms will develop. Persistent cough, fatigue
after moderate activity, reluctance to exercise, decreased appetite and weight
loss can be warning symptoms. However, to make sure that the dog is not
infected, a blood test must be taken. If the test is negative, owners have to
see to the prevention.
However expensive it is, RSPCAs should also test the
dogs in their care. It would be a wanton act to give infected dogs to families,
as the infection, just as a surgical intervention, endangers the life of the
dog.
A sad fact is that the text illustration to this
article was taken of the heart of one of our infected dogs, which did not
survive the operation.
Treatment
Infected dogs must be
treated immediately. There are many different ways of treating the animals.
Unfortunately, the injection has not been registered in Hungary yet, so it has
to be bought abroad. You should always consult with your vet, as a treatment is
a confidential cooperation between owners and vets as well. Although death rate
among infected dogs is quite high, we have already managed to get infected
animals cured. The cost of the treatment, however, was extremely high.
Prevention
There are two ways to
prevent the infection and the most effective way is to combine them. First,
transmitting mosquitoes must be kept away from dogs. It is worth buying dog
collars and drops which protect the animal not only from fleas and ticks, but
also from other parasites. Among others, the Scalibor collar, the Advantix,
Advocate, Stronghold and exSpot drops can protect the dog from the bite of
common gnats (cluex pipiens). However, once the parasites got into the
bloodstream, they must be exterminated. The vermifuge Milbemax can be a good
choice, but can be applied carefully and only on dogs with a negative test. For
animals carrying developed worms the drug can be a deadly poison!
For further information, you
should ask your vet and check the suitable homepages.
Our society is trying to
test and protect the dogs in our care. Unfortunately, this is a costly
procedure and is still not comprehensive.
www.futrinkautca.hu
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