[Dailydrool] Information on Heartworms

[Pam Farris]

Since there are people asking about heartworms, and since BRF deals with it quite often down here, I encourage anyone interested in learning more to visit this link http://www.heartwormsociety.org/  They have great information that is up to date for both vets and for "regular" people.  

The thing to remember is that it takes one bite from one infected mosquito to transmit the heartworms to a dog.  There is almost a 100% chance of your dog getting heartworms if they are bitten by an infected mosquito.  The odds are not good and the treatment is not only costly but extremely difficult on the dog.  

We had 5 bassets treated for heartworms this past weekend.  Probably 50 to 60 of the ones that have come through our rescue came in heartworm positive. There are areas where it is more prevelant and in the link I provided there is a series of maps showing the spread of the disease from 2001 to 2007 I believe.  

Down where we are located heartworm prevention is not optional....up in the northwest, perhaps some months you can skip it. I personally would not because with my luck, an infected mosquito that hitched a ride in some warm truck from the south would find it's way to my dog, even in the snowcapped mountains of Utah.  

I hope this website helps each of you with your decisions about prevention and for those of you who have to make decisions about treatment as well. If you have any questions about our experiences with the disease and the treatments, I'm happy to answer them.

Pam Farris
Basset Rescue of Florida, Inc.
www.BassetRescueFlorida.com