Heartworm Awareness Month – April 2024

History of Heartworm Awareness Month

Heartworm disease is a serious disease that can be found in pets, especially in furry pets such as dogs, cats, ferrets, and in wild animals such as foxes, wolves, coyotes, e.t.c. Heartworms are parasitic worms that are carried and transmitted by infected mosquitoes. The parasite responsible for this is a worm called Dirofilaria immitis. It can be found in blood vessels and chambers of the heart and they usually live free-floating in the right ventricle of the heart and surrounding blood vessels.

When infected by the worm, the functioning of blood vessels in the heart is impaired, which reduces lung capacity and leads to death. One thing to note here is that heartworm disease is not contagious — it cannot be transmitted from one pet to another. Heartworm disease is only spread through the bite of a mosquito carrying that worm. Upon infection, it can live up to five to seven years inside a dog and up to two to three years inside a cat. Signs of heartworm disease in dogs include persistent cough, fatigue, decreased appetite, and weight loss. Signs of heartworm in cats include coughing, asthma, vomiting, decreased appetite, and weight loss.

Heartworms can affect the animal’s health and quality of life long after the heartworms are gone. So, as the owner and best friend of your beloved pet, it is your duty to have them regularly checked out so that they can be treated accordingly if needed. Follow the recommendations of the American Heartworm Society and take your pet for their annual heartworm screening and give them year-round heartworm preventative medication to keep them healthy.