Humane Society Issues Heartworm Warning

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The Windsor/Essex County Humane Society is sending out a warning to all dog owners about the importance of annual heartworm testing and preventative medication.

The Humane Society says that too often they hear from people who skip these treatments as a way to save money or don’t think their pet is at risk, but doing so could cost your dog his life.

They say thought that heartworm disease is relatively inexpensive to prevent, but neglecting prevention could end up costing thousands of dollars to treat your dog for the adult worms. All dogs are at risk due to the fact that heartworm is spread by mosquitoes which carry the parasite.

The Humane Society has had seven dogs test positive for the heartworm already this year, and they say that this number is much higher than they have seen in recent years. In fact, in the past five years the most cases they have seen in an entire year is four.

The treatment is long, uncomfortable, dangerous and expensive, but most dogs are able to recover fully after treatment if it is initiated before there has already been too much damage to the heart.

They strongly encourage all dog owners to contact their primary care veterinarian for more information and to get their dog(s) tested and on prevention today.