Main Symptoms Of Heartworm Canine
Learn about the symptoms of canine heartworm disease, one of the most lethal diseases that affect pets, which is why it has been the subject of several scientific studies. Currently, there are effective preventive treatments essential to ensure the animal’s well-being.
Canine heartworm disease is a cardiopulmonary disease caused by the nematode Dirofilaria immitis, commonly known as the ‘heart parasite’.
This parasite is located mainly in the right ventricle and pulmonary artery of the host, although it can migrate to other areas of the body in more severe cases.
In addition to dogs, cats, wolves, foxes and ferrets are also susceptible to the disease. The transmission of the parasite is vectorial, through a mosquito belonging to the genera Aedes , Anopheles or Culex, among others.
In this way, the mosquito ingests the microfilariae that will later be transmitted to the dog through the bite.
Canine Heartworm Symptoms
In the early stages of the disease, the animal will show no apparent symptoms. However, after one or several years after infection, the dog will experience the following disturbances:
- Light and persistent cough.
- Resistance to physical exercise and fatigue after performing moderate physical activity.
- Lack of appetite and consequent weight loss.
- Heart failure and abdominal bloating due to fluid retention. Both disorders appear when the disease is very advanced.
- Finally, in cases involving the death of the dog, the so-called vena cava syndrome will occur . It starts with breathing difficulties, pale gums, bloody urination, and finally blockages of blood flow that will lead to heart failure.
Despite receiving the relevant preventive treatment, dogs must undergo an annual check for possible infection. The effectiveness of heartworm medications is very high, but they must be administered rigorously, as skipping a single dose can put the animal at risk.
Dogs infected with Dirofilaria immitis can have about thirty worms in their hearts, so the greater the number of these, the more severe the symptoms.
Likewise, the diagnosis will be more conclusive the longer the course of the disease and there is an obvious symptomatology. The physical examination, X-rays, ultrasound and different types of blood tests are necessary to confirm the presence of infection.
Preventive measures
The lethality of canine heartworm disease makes it essential to carry out an adequate prophylactic treatment. There are oral and topical options or through injections, each with a certain frequency of administration.
All of these drugs work by eliminating immature heartworm larvae, which include the infectious larvae deposited by the mosquito vector, as well as the next larval stage.
After a period of approximately 51 days, the immature larvae will enter the adult stage, against which preventive treatments will be ineffective. Due to the short life cycle of this parasite, it is essential to strictly adhere to the number of doses prescribed by the veterinarian.
In case the dog has been infected, one type of protocol or another will be established, depending on the degree of development of the disease and the associated symptoms.
Although asymptomatic cases are more likely to succeed, disease severity need not be associated with symptom severity.
In fact, the sickest dogs with the most worms may be the ones with the least evidence of infection.
Canine heartworm disease is one of the pathologies that cause most deaths in domestic dogs, causing a global impact. However, it was precisely this impact that allowed an extensive study of the subject, whose results led to the development of effective preventive treatments for animal health.
