This is Eddie. We fostered him from June 28 – July 2. He’s happy. He loves to play, especially fetch. He’s a laid back down to earth guy. Sounds perfect, right? The good news for Eddie is that he has been adopted. The bad news is that he is heartworm positive. Here is another article that does a good job of explaining heartworm.
Eddies about five years of age. His heartworm test came back positive pretty quickly. The test is similar to a pregnancy test in that time is allowed to elapse and if there’s no positive outcome an indicator will remain the same. The faster the test changes the more antigens are present, which means a more severe case of heartworm.
Eddie has likely had heartworm for years. Because the worms take over the heart and other vital organs slowly without a test it’s hard to tell that a dog is infected. Because a dog can be heartworm positive for year the symptoms can easily be mistaken for an aging dog.
Eddie loved to play fetch. But he didn’t have much stamina. Was this because he wasn’t used to playing with his previous owners and spent weeks in a shelter where he didn’t get much exercise? Was this because he’s starting to get a little older? Although the age of five for a lab isn’t old. Or is this lack of stamina from having heartworms for years? It’s hard to tell.
Heartworm prevention is much cheaper and easier than dealing with treatment. A pill that costs about $7 a month is nothing compared to a $500 – $1,000 bill (depending on how severe the case is) for treatment. If a dog lives to be 13 years of and is given a pill that costs $7 his entire life the total is $1092. Although the cost of “lifetime” prevention is the same or a little more than treatment, if a dog is left untreated there’s a big risk of multiple infections. There’s also recovery time. And of course all that a dog has to go through with treatment and recovery. I think more important than the cost is what the dog has to endure.
Being heartworm positive is a serious condition. If left untreated a dog will eventually have heart failure. Heartworms live in, you guessed it, the heart. They can live for years in there. Eventually they cause a dog to have a heart attack if they’re allowed to remain there. These worms are transmitted through mosquito bites. An infected mosquito bites a dog. Then the heartworms grow and reproduce.
A monthly Heartgard (or other preventative such as Interceptor or Revolution) does not allow heartworms to develop and reproduce. And a yearly test done at a vet’s office confirms that monthly treatment is working properly. If a dog is given monthly treatments regularly the chance of getting heartworm is slim. Without it you take a big risk. Many people don’t know or realize how serious heartworm can be or how easily it can be avoided.
A dog will not show any adverse signs or change in personality or physical characteristics at first. In fact it could be years before heartworm positive symptoms are seen. This is why prevention and yearly testing is important. If a dog is heartworm positive the sooner treatment can be done the better. If it’s caught early on recovery is easier on the dog and owner.
For heartworm treatment a dog is typically taken to the vet in the morning and stays one to two nights depending on how severe the case is and how the dog reacts to treatment. The dog is basically given poison (arsenic), which starts to dissolve and kill the heartworms. After treatment a dog must be on limited exercise and activity for 4-6 weeks. During this time the worms are breaking up and they collect in the lungs where they are dissolved into the body. If blood gets pumping through the heart too fast these dissolving worms can break free and clog arteries or too many can go to the lungs causing problems. After a few weeks a dog is usually examined to check heart and lungs to see how recovery is going. In extreme cases a second treatment is needed and the recovery time starts over again.
In my research on heartworm positive dogs I was not able to find if life expectancy of the dog changed if treated for heartworm. I wondered if a severe case would weaken the heart of an adult dog. I’m not sure if lack of information on this is a good sign meaning that treatment is usually successful and dogs go on to live normal and healthy lives or if clinical research hasn’t been done or isn’t documented in places where I’ve looked.
VPC will be paying for Eddie’s heartworm treatment. Had he tested heartworm positive in a shelter he would be high on the euthanasia list because treatment is expensive. Thankfully Eddie will get treatment and continue on in life. Vicky currently has three, including Eddie, heartworm positive dogs! The adoption fee for these dogs is not raised due to additional medical that has to be done. The organization will absorb the loss.
If you have a dog and are not getting a heartworm test every year or every other year and using monthly preventative you should start. Some owners and vets recommend monthly preventative during mosquito season since this is how the worms infect a dog. This decision is up to you and your vet. Andrew and I personally use preventative every month of the year. Dogs should start on heartworm preventative around four months of age. Prevention will save your pet from enduring treatment and a lengthy recovery. It will save your wallet from being depleted hundreds of dollars. Heartworm is a serious, yet easily preventable disease.
I adopted a small cross breed dog when he was seven years old. I adopted him because people were skeptical of a dog that had heartworms and would not adopt him. At the time, the adoption agency told me that the vet had given him an approximate life expectancy of about 2 1/2 more years. Recently he has shown abnormal signs, ie, whimpering a lot and acting as if it hurts him when he is touched. Is this an advanced reaction to the heartworms, and if so what can I do to help him.
Thanks, Harold Ledbetter
It’s really hard to say if the symptoms your dog is having are due to heartworm or something else. I’m obviously no vet so I’m not writing with any kind of authority.
Was you dog treated for heartworms before (or after) you adopted him? If he was treated the heartworms should be gone and no longer deteriorating his heart. How much stress the heart was under depends on how long he had heartworms before they were discovered and treated.
If he was in latter stages, getting all that much closer to heart failure that could be why he was given another two and a half years to live. I’ve not found any research on life expectancy of dogs that have had heartworm and were treated.
Because heartworm is found in the heart I wouldn’t think that whimpering and acting as if it hurts when he’s touched would be related. I’d expect to see something more like easy fatigue, slowing down as far as activity goes, basically things that you’d see in a dog that’s getting older but the onset is sooner and possibly quicker.
If your dog hasn’t been treated for heartworms he should be in order to help him feel more comfortable. Dogs that have or have had them can still live normal lives, especially if treated early.
Good luck to you and your dog!
Several months ago, my husband and I decided to adopt a small stray (looks like a full-blooded shi-tzu) who had apparently been dumped out by his original owner by our house. (We live out in the country, a popular dumping place for unwanted cats and dogs.) We took “Hobo” to our vet for his shots and an exam, and the very last thing we expected was that he would be positive for heartworms. Our vet said that he was in a pretty early stage of the disease. She determined that he is approximately 5-6 years old.
Unfortunately, the expense of the treatment is prohibitive for our income and financial obligations. We love “Hobo” very much, and it breaks our heart that because we can’t afford the treatment that he will die. He is very, very playful and active at this point in time, and he is loved on constantly. We can’t even tell that anything is wrong with him, as far as the way he runs and plays.
My question is, should my husband and I just continue giving “Hobo” lots of love until, and if, he starts to show symptoms of the disease? How long can he live with this disease, and what are the symptoms that the “end is near?” There is NO WAY we would have the heart to have him euthanized unless it’s the last resort to keep him from suffering. How much suffering will he endure? We would rather him die here at home if he’s not in horrible pain. We are heartsick that we can’t afford the heartworm treatment, but we have given him so much love since we adopted him (or HE adopted us!). Please give me whatever advice you can offer. Thanks, and God bless.
I feal your pain deepley I lost my wife 2 years ago to cancer, I had no Ins. and it broke me , we had 4 dogs 3 of them uas my wifes and one was mine , he went everware I went he was my best friend. One day he seamed to slow in some ways so I tuck him to the vet and he had heartworms so bad that they diden’t think he could live throu the trement and they could tret him untel after the new year a week awey so I tuck him to CSU in Fort Callons CO they gave him the trement and he got to come home xmas eve how happy I was but he had to go back in one month for one more trement , I was told to keep him as still as possabbel . I was out cutting fire wood for heat and he wanted to be with so bad he broke a blood clot louse and died the next day at CSU it broke my heart the bill was over $3,000.00 and I am tring to pay it but now the other 3 dogs have heartworms and I have no money left to try to save them . I live in Colorado and never new that Heartworms was even hear the vet had not sean any over 20 years. Now I know but it’s to late , now I get to see it happen three more times . Have your dog tested if you love them before it’s to late
I too live in Colorado. About a month ago my husband and I adopted from one of the local shelters a stray basset hound mix. It was probably a week after we got her that she started having seizures. After doing full blood work, they determined she was heartworm positive. The vet says she is in stage 1 and we have gone through the treatments. I guess time will tell us if she has been cleared of her heartworms.
My husband and I adopted a pup of about 3 years old and is heartworm positive, his test actually came back very high. I also have another rescue since May and they clicked right away. They play and tossle constantly with each other.
My question is I will be getting a crate for Scupper for after he starts his treatment to keep him calm. I am concerned that since they are so use to playing now together it will be tough for me to keep Scupper still for 7 to eight weeks with Daisy looking on. They also are both use to sleeping with us. Any advise from experience?
we are going through the heartworm recovery stage for our 7 yr old black lab, tyson rene. He had the treatment almost two weeks ago and is taking the recovery part pretty hard. Most of the time he is lying down asleep but ocassionally he will have to go to the bathroom. We have noticed that he will hold it in until the absolute last minute before he busts. He has always been a very good upbeat dog until as of late. My heart goes out to all those who are sadly expeirencing the same thing and I cry out to those who have not been tested or treated yet. My only thought every time that I look down at him struggling for his will to become himself again is that it is all so unecessary. I swear that my dog shall never have to suffer again because he is going on the prevention as soon as I can possibly put him on it. God bless you all humans and critters alike.