When you want to keep your pet healthy and happy, you need to give them proper care and treatment. One aspect of comprehensive pet care is heartworm prevention. For more than 25 years, Clovedale Pet Hospital has been the premier veterinarian for pet owners in Cincinnati, OH. Their caring, professional team provides compassionate and thorough pet care to animals of all sizes.

The veterinarian team at Clovedale Pet Hospital shares some information about heartworm, and why preventing it is so important:

• Dangers Of Heartworm Disease: Heartworm disease occurs when long worms—called heartworms—live in a pet’s organs, including its heart and lungs. Dogs are typical heartworm hosts, and if left untreated, the disease can cause deadly complications, such as lung disease and heart failure.

• How Heartworm Is Contracted: Heartworm is contracted from infected animals. Besides other dogs, wild animals, such as foxes, coyotes, and wolves in your area, can carry the disease as well. When a mosquito bites an infected animal, it can pass the baby worms along to another animal.
• Heartworm Prevention Tactics: While heartworm prevention is essential year-round, it is especially critical during mosquito season. Heartworm medicine can be administered in the form of an oral tab, topical treatment, or injection. If you’re unsure which approach is best for your pet, consult with an experienced veterinarian. Regular heartworm testing is important, and in dogs over 7 months of age, testing is required before beginning the first round of preventative treatment.

Heartworm is a potentially deadly but preventable disease. To further discuss heartworm prevention tactics or other pet vaccinations with a veterinarian at Clovedale Pet Hospital, schedule an appointment by calling (513) 251-4666. You can also visit their website for additional information about their services.