Though some dogs do not experience the muscle soreness, it is particularly important not to pick up the dog or put any pressure on the back for 2-4 days after the injections. Even a gentle dog might cry out and snap in pain if that area is touched.
The medicine in the treatment (Immiticide) can cause a lot of inflammation at the injection site. This can occur no matter how smoothly things go and how little it seems to bother the dog at the time. This can range from being absolutely undetectable to a dog that is crying constantly with pain.
Your pet has undergone treatment for Heartworm Disease. There may be some muscle soreness in his/her lower back as a result of the injections administered in this area for the heartworm treatment. The soreness usually resolves within 3-7 days after the treatment.
This is the unsatisfactory part of the heartworm treatment. It's why dogs feel bad a week or so after they are treated. That's when the worms die and shift position. The dog may have a fever, cough, lose appetite, have trouble breathing, or cough up blood.
Do the heartworm treatment injections hurt? The injections are given within the muscle and can indeed be uncomfortable, but the inflammation that develops within the days following creates the most discomfort. Restlessness, panting, trembling and reduced appetite can all be signs that the dog is uncomfortable.
Some dogs experience nausea and are lethargic. These symptoms will usually ease over a couple of days. Though some dogs do not experience the muscle soreness, it is important not to pick up the dog or put any pressure on the back for 2‐4 days after the injections.
Most post-treatment complications arise from these fragments of decomposing heartworms, so to minimize this risk your dog must not be allowed to exercise and should be kept as quiet as possible for the first month following treatment. For seven to eight weeks following injection, a cough will be noticeable.
THE FIRST 30 DAYS AFTER TREATMENT ARE THE MOST CRITICAL! It is best to limit your pet to leash exercise only long enough to urinate and have bowel movements. Avoid all excitable circumstances and stress as much as possible.
Most dogs receive an initial injection, followed by a 30-day period of rest, and then two more injections that are given 24 hours apart. As melarsomine can cause muscle pain, dogs will often receive pain medication as well. "As melarsomine can cause muscle pain, dogs will often receive pain medication as well."
A pivotal factor in reducing the risk of thromboembolic complications is to restrict exercise during the critical month following treatment. Dogs that have undergone heartworm treatment should be kept on strict rest.
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.
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.
Heartworm disease can be painful if the heart is very enlarged or if the migration of the worm suddenly happens and causes some issues in the vessels.
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.
Vomiting or diarrhea were the most frequently reported side effects and typically occurred within 24 hours of dosing. The following adverse reactions have been reported following the use of Heartgard and Heartgard Plus: Vomiting. Diarrhea.
Heartworms can also cause nosebleeds, pneumonia, high blood pressure, seizures, blindness, and excessive sleeping. When heartworms reach places other than the heart and lungs, like the brain and eyes, dogs will experience seizures and blindness.
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.
Dogs with heartworm disease, for example, require exercise restriction before and heartworm treatment, as well as for a short time after treatment. Physical activity increases the likelihood of adult worms causing a pulmonary thromboembolism, which may be fatal. Limiting a dog's physical activity decreases this risk.
Approximately 6 months after treatment is completed, your veterinarian will perform a heartworm test to confirm that all heartworms have been eliminated. To avoid the possibility of your dog contracting heartworm disease again, you will want to administer heartworm prevention year-round for the rest of his life.
To reduce the risk of negative side effects for your pet, our veterinarians recommend closely following these 3 guidelines: Rest for 60 days (ideally in a crate): Rest is the single most important factor to successful heartworm treatment.
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.
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.
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. This resorption can take several weeks to months, and most post-treatment complications are caused by these fragments of dead heartworms.