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New Study Reveals Alarming Gap In Dogs, Heartworm Prevention
A new paper published in Frontiers in Veterinary Science revealed a concerning finding: Less than 40% of dogs in the longitudinal Golden Retriever Lifetime Study were on preventive heartworm medications at baseline. This is a troubling discovery, as heartworm disease is a serious and potentially fatal condition that is preventable in dogs.
This study, conducted by researchers at Lincoln Memorial University, investigated what factors predict heartworm preventive medication use in the golden retrievers in the Study cohort. The team unearthed critical factors associated with a reduced likelihood of dogs being on heartworm prevention, including dogs in the highest quartile of height, sexually intact dogs and dogs receiving supplements.
Conversely, dogs receiving other vaccines or diagnosed with an infectious disease or an ear, nose, or throat health condition during their health checkups in the last year were likelier to receive heartworm preventives.
Dr. Lauren Wisnieski, Associate Professor of Public Health and Research at Lincoln Memorial University and the study's principal investigator, emphasized the scarcity of studies examining the prevalence of prophylactic use in dogs. She said this recent project is especially crucial as climate change has extended mosquito season in certain states, making year-round vigilance imperative.
Heartworm larvae are deposited onto a dog's or cat's skin during a mosquito bite, where they undergo maturation, sometimes for several months. Despite advances in understanding heartworm disease, including improved diagnostic tests and safer, more effective treatments, heartworm disease remains a significant health threat for pets in all 50 states.
Heartworms can grow to a foot long and cause lasting damage to the heart, lungs and other organs. While treatment is possible, it can be financially costly for the owners and often means a long recovery, if successful, for the pet.
"This data can help inform how veterinarians talk to clients," Wisnieski said. "It can also help identify populations that have risks of nonadherence. Prevention is a cheaper alternative to the financial burden of treating heartworm disease later."
Wisnieski said now that she and her team have preliminary data, they will work on broadening their research scope. This expansion will encompass diverse dog breeds, those given supplements, the impact of cost on preventive use and the effect of the human-animal bond.
More information: Lauren Wisnieski et al, Factors associated with heartworm preventative use in the golden retriever lifetime study, Frontiers in Veterinary Science (2023). DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2023.1208804
Provided by Morris Animal Foundation
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Dog Owners Urged To Take Precautions As Heartworm Cases Rise On Island
Dog owners urged to take precautions as heartworm cases rise on IslandNancy RussellCBC NewsPosted: Tuesday, October 24th, 2023 9:00 AMLast Updated: October 24th
Parasite can be spread by mosquitoes biting infected pets, then other animals
Load ImageDog owners on Prince Edward Island are being encouraged to take precautions to protect their animals from heartworm, as the number of cases takes a big jump.
"We test about 150 dogs per year for canine heartworm, and in the last about five years we've seen that about 50 per cent of the samples that we get are positive for heartworm," said Dr. Nina Germitsch, a veterinary parasitologist based at the Atlantic Veterinary College in Charlottetown.
"We've been doing the testing since the '90s and it would be maybe one, two, three dogs a year — sometimes none," she said. "It started increasing in the last 10 years, and really in the last about five years, we've seen a lot of positive cases."
Heartworm disease occurs when an animal hosting the parasite develops inflammation that scars and narrows arteries and damages lung tissue. As well as the heart and lungs, the liver and kidney can also be impaired.
Load ImageWhen a female mosquito bites an infected animal, the parasite's tiny offspring incubate in the insect and eventually get passed on when the mosquito bites another dog. The second dog wouldn't show symptoms until the larvae mature and the adult heartworms start to do damage.
Germitsch said most of the animals that are being diagnosed with canine heartworm on P.E.I. Have been imported from the southern United States, part of a flood of rescue dogs being brought into the Atlantic provinces from that region.
She would like to see greater awareness around the potential dangers of the disease so that new owners are better informed and can opt to give their pets preventative medication, usually in the form of chewable pills.
"For parasites in general, there are no rules to import animals into Canada. So there's no restrictions, there's no testing, there's no treatment at all," Germitsch said.
"It's very difficult to diagnose, very difficult to treat," she said — not to mention being very costly.
Costly, complicated treatmentThere are different ways of treating the disease, but Germitsch recommends the protocol from the American Heartworm Society to clinicians, and teaches it to her students.
Open Full Embed in New Tab Loading external pages may require significantly more data usage."It's a very lengthy treatment. It's a risky treatment, also an expensive treatment," Germitsch said.
"We would give three different drugs… over the course of three months, and then after three months the veterinary needs to give three injections that will actually kill the adult parasite in the heart, to get rid of the parasite in the dog."
The dog's ability to exercise also has to be restricted for up to six months, Germitsch said, to reduce the risk of deadly side-effects like thromboembolism, or blood clots, as the dead parasites are flushed out of the heart.
Load ImageGermitsch said the first cases are now being reported in dogs in P.E.I. And New Brunswick that haven't travelled, meaning they contracted the disease locally.
"When we bring in these animals from the southern states that are infected, mosquitoes will pick up the larvae from these dogs, and then they can infect other dogs," she said.
"If we keep seeing cases in dogs here, then we definitely need to recommend to all dog owners that they should be giving preventatives throughout the summer."
'Pretty tough on her'AVC student Chelsea DiGregorio also recommends that P.E.I. Dog owners protect their animals against heartworm, after her American Akita survived a bout of the disease while she was living in North Carolina, where her family is from.
Load ImageDiGregorio, who is in her third year, said dogs are tested on a regular basis in her home state, and that's how she found out that Nova had heartworm.
"My parents were people that just kind of intermittently gave prevention, kind of 'It's not that big of a deal,'" DiGregorio said.
"From then on, it was a lot of money, and six months of treatment for her, and it was pretty tough on her because you have to keep them confined to a really small space…
Load Image"But she lived through it. Not every dog does. So thankfully she did. And from now on, she's on prevention every month."
DiGregorio thinks Nova contracted heartworm during a family trip in 2019.
"We took one trip for a weekend and that was it, down to my grandma's in Virginia, and I think that's when she got it. So it really takes one time, one trip, and that was it."
Load ImageDiGregorio said they are keeping a careful watch on Nova, now nine, to make sure there has been no long-term damage.
"Because we… caught it so early, before she actually had symptoms and signs, we were able to get the worms gone before any long-term effects happened," DiGregorio said.
"A lot of times they see signs and they do have long-term effects, but luckily Nova didn't."
She lived through it. Not every dog does. So thankfully she did.—Chelsea DiGregorio, dog owner
DiGregorio hopes her story brings greater awareness to heartworm, and the importance of protecting Island dogs.
Load Image"It does worry me a lot because a lot of people are just kind of putting it off… 'It's not going to happen to me. It's down in Texas and Florida,'" DiGregorio said.
"It only takes one mosquito, and they can live in the house for a while. So in my opinion, everyone should be on prevention 12 months out of the year, but at least during those warmer months when mosquitoes are out. "
Here Is Why Heartworm Medicine Is Important
Heartworm disease can be a serious threat to our beloved pets, but with proper preventative measures, we can keep our animals safe and healthy.
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Jean Rutkowski has been a veterinarian technician for over 40 years. She works at Pawmetto Lifeline, an animal rescue organization. Heartworm prevention is extremely important, according to her.
"Heartworms are actually parasites, a long worm that attaches itself to the heart. The more heartworms there are, the more blockage there is to the heart," says Rutkowski.
These worms can grow and multiply within the heart and lungs of our pets, leading to severe health issues and, in some cases, even death. The good news is that heartworm disease is entirely preventable through regular use of heartworm medicine.
"Heartworm is treatable," Rutkowski says. "It is very simple. There are a couple of ways you can do it: there is oral, some are chewies. There is also topical that you can put on the back of the animal's neck and absorbed through the bloodstream."
Using heartworm medicine kills the immature worms that are transmitted by mosquitoes. Even if mosquitoes are less prevalent in your area, it's important to stay proactive and administer the medicine regularly.
"The mosquitoes are consistently feeding off of cats and dogs. It doesn't matter how long their hair is or anything like that; the mosquitoes are going to get in there. For just 20 bucks a month, you can keep your dog safe from heartworms," says Rutkowski.
Heartworm prevention is a simple yet vital step in responsible pet ownership.
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