This Immiticide, administered as a series of intramuscular injections, kills the heartworms. Unlike intestinal parasites, however, which, once killed, can simply be passed in the animal's stool, heartworms, once dead, do not have an easy way to be eliminated from the body.
After treatment, the adult worms die and are carried by the blood to the lungs where they lodge in small blood vessels. There they decompose and are absorbed by the body over a period of several months.
Heartworm antigen testing is the most reliable method of confirming that all of the adult heartworms have been eliminated. Although many dogs are antigen-negative 16 weeks after treatment, it can take longer for the antigen to be completely cleared from some dogs.
Since heartworms cannot leave a dog's body through its feces, you will not find any signs of heartworms in dog poop. If they are swallowed after being coughed up from the lungs, they will have already been digested by the time they reach the stomach and small and large intestines.
There is no reason to allow running, jumping, or other physical activity at any time for 8 weeks after the start of the injectable heartworm adulticide treatment.
“Only slow, low-impact walks are allowed for the first five to six months after diagnosis,” Dr. Marteney told The Dodo. “No running, jumping, playing or high-impact exercise as these activities may cause the worms to break loose and cause significant harm to the pet being treated.”
Treatment makes the heartworms fragile, so the body can break them down slowly over the next 6 weeks. Allowing vigorous activity at any time in these 6 weeks can cause the weakened heartworms to shatter, causing a clot of worm fragments that blocks off blood flow to the lungs, brain, or other organs.
Active dogs, dogs heavily infected with heartworms, or those with other health problems often show pronounced clinical signs. Signs of heartworm disease may include a mild persistent cough, reluctance to exercise, fatigue after moderate activity, decreased appetite, and weight loss.
Dog life expectancy after heartworm treatment depends on how much damage was done, how the dog tolerates treatment, and the overall health of the dog. In general, dogs that are asymptomatic for heartworm disease can live a long, healthy life free of symptoms after treatment.
Bloody diarrhea develops as the infection worsens and may cause chronic bloody diarrhea if left untreated. Blood loss is a serious risk for dogs infected with worms. It is especially dangerous for dogs with heartworm. Too much blood loss can result in lethargy, extremely high blood pressure and possibly heart failure.
Prognosis: heartworm treatment success rates
With the three-dose adulticide protocol described above, in conjunction with doxycycline and macrocyclic lactones as recommended by the American Heartworm Society, 98% of dogs will be cleared of heartworm infection.
Once a positive test is confirmed, our veterinarians (in alignment with the American Heartworm Society) recommend treating adult heartworm infections with 3 treatments (injections) of a drug called melarsomine.
Recheck Heartworm Test: After the Immiticide is administered it takes about 4-6 months for the heartworms to die off. 6 months after the 2nd & 3rd treatments we retest for heartworms to make they were all terminated.
The adult worms die in a few days and start to decompose. As they break up, they are carried to the lungs where they lodge in the small blood vessels and are eventually reabsorbed by the body.
Heartworm disease is not contagious, meaning that a dog cannot catch the disease from being near an infected dog. Heartworm disease is only spread through the bite of a mosquito. Inside a dog, a heartworm's lifespan is 5 to 7 years.
Dogs with heartworm disease can live high-quality lives as long as they are given appropriate care. After completing treatment and following your veterinarian's recommenda- tions on heartworm disease testing and prevention, the chances of any long-term effects are very low.
In severely affected dogs, you may see a swollen abdomen due to fluid buildup because the heart cannot effectively circulate blood, or notice a cough, or other signs such as respiratory distress. Heartworm disease in dogs is known as a silent killer, because it can take months before your dog shows symptoms.
Dogs who cough often may cause themselves to vomit as a result of their extensive coughing. Some dogs may feel nauseated from their heartworms as well, and may vomit often just because they feel so sick with the disease.
Discussion. Hemoptysis (expectoration or coughing up of blood) has been reported as a consequence of severe heartworm infection in dogs,2-6 although it remains a relatively uncommon finding. Even fewer reports exist of dogs coughing up or vomiting up adult heartworms.
Since the mosquito is needed to carry the microfilariae, heartworm disease is not contagious from one dog to another dog. People also cannot get heartworms from dogs. Dogs and humans can only get heartworms from infected mosquitos.
Keeping Your Heartworm Positive Dog Happy
During exercise restriction: Give several; short leash walks during the off-temperature times of the day. These are SHORT walks, 10 minutes max at a leisurely pace. Provide more exploration and sniffing activities than actual walking.
You should know that although heartworm can be fatal, it is very treatable if caught early. And even more importantly, your veterinarian can prescribe preventatives that are highly effective in stopping your dog from getting heartworm in the first place.
Strict rest is imperative for 6-8 weeks. This means that your pet can be leashed walked outside to urinate and defecated, but must come back inside to rest. Do not allow your pet to run, jump, climb stairs, or play rough with other dogs or children.