Phase One of Heartworm Treatment

Heartworms are unfortunate parasites that are spread to dogs through mosquito bites. While mature heartworms live directly in a dog’s heart, immature heartworms live in the bloodstream. When a mosquito bites an infected dog, he carries the heartworm ridden blood to the next dog, thus infecting the dog with his bite. There are medications to prevent your dog from contracting heartworms. Nevertheless, it is important to ensure that your dog is free from the parasite by having your veterinarian do yearly, or bi-yearly heartworm checks.

If your veterinarian concludes that your dog has heartworms, he or she will complete an all over examination to determine the best plan for treatment. Though heartworm treatments are often effective, if undertaken in a timely manner, they are long and stressful. Because two forms of the heartworm live in two different sections of your dog’s body, there are two very distinct steps for treating heartworms.

In the first step, your veterinarian will treat the adult heartworms in your dog’s heart.To treat these heartworms, your veterinarian will give your dog injections over the course of a couple of days. The injected medicines will kill the worms in the heart, breaking them down into smaller pieces so that they can be eliminated from your dog’s body. Though this is an important step, it is even more important to ensure a quiet recovery. It is possible that the pieces of heartworm can get in your dog’s blood vessels. Do not let your dog partake in any rigorous, physical activity following this step of heartworm treatment.

Over the next five weeks, your dog will need to recover quietly from the adult heartworms. Watch him carefully for signs of discomfort, like a lack of appetite, vomiting, or overall depression. If you notice any of these signs, return him to the veterinarian immediately for further care. Also check his temperature daily to be sure it does not go above 102.4 degrees. These five weeks are important to prepare for phase two of heartworm recovery.