Being a pet parent to a cat or a dog is not something to take lightly. They need care just as much as children do.
Prevention of Heartworm
After all, your pets are your family too and should be treated as such. When it comes to heartworms and intestinal worms in cats and dogs, you should know the best ways to prevent these parasites in your pets. Not only can parasites make them sick but if not treated properly, they can even kill your furbaby. No one wants to think about their beloved pet dying on them. Here are 7 things you are probably not doing to prevent heartworms and intestinal worms in dogs and cats.
Getting Educated
If you are going to be a good pet parent to your beloved dog or cat, you should be well educated on everything that has to do with heartworms. You need to know what causes it, how to prevent it from attacking your pet, and what to do if it eventually does attack them. You will need to know what to do to save their life.
We live in an age of constant information so there is no excuse for not knowing everything there is to know about heartworms. Understanding and knowing the facts from the myths is a good place to start and with the Internet providing us with knowledge at our fingertips, there is no reason we shouldn't get educated about this deadly parasite that can attack our pets.
Understanding That Heartworm Exists Everywhere
When getting educated, you should know that heartworms exist everywhere. At least in the lower 48 states. There is a myth that dogs and cats only get heartworm in certain areas of the United States. However, this is a major myth because although this parasite is more common in the Southeastern part of the United States as well as along the Mississippi River, there have been known cases in all of the lower 48 states within the past 17 years.
Knowing That Heartworms Are Carried by Mosquitoes
You can thank the mosquitoes for the increase in heartworm since they are carriers of them. The larvae from the heartworm are spread through the bloodstream. Once a mosquito bites your pet, the heartworm is transmitted from the mosquito to your pet's veins and lives in their hearts and arteries. If left untreated, they can cause permanent damage or kill your furkids.
Prevention of Intestinal Worms
Contacting a Veterinarian
Some pet parents might want to save a little bit of money and take control of the intestinal worms themselves. However, this is not a good idea. It is always a good idea to contact your veterinarian to ensure your pet's health and safety from the worms. Although intestinal worms are easier to prevent and get rid of than other parasites, it is still better to consult a vet and get professional help.
Giving Preventive Medication
When consulting your veterinarian about getting the help you need to prevent and treat intestinal worms, ask for a good recommendation for a heartworm medicine. Interceptor and Interceptor Plus treat both heartworms and intestinal worms along with other reputed deworming products. Asking your vet about preventive medication like Panacur for your pet is a good idea because they know everything there is to know about it.
Keeping Your Yard Clean from Feces
When taking your dog out for a walk or letting your cat outside to go to the potty, you need to make sure your yard is clean from feces. If not, they can easily step in it or even choose to eat it and end up with intestinal parasites. Make sure to always take a baggie on walks with you when walking your dogs is always a good idea to keep your pet safe from worms.
Knowing these 7 ways to prevent heartworm and intestinal worms will prevent and treat the parasites they do end up with. Being educated about the types of parasites there are is always a good first step in preventing anything from happening to your pet because of one of these nasty parasites. You want to do everything you can to prevent the parasites first and then learn how to treat them later if they do end up with them because, after all, they are like your children and you want to treat them like they are your children. Family is family, after all, and when you love your pets like family, you treat them like family.
You Need to Test Your Pet Annually for Intestinal Worms
Intestinal worms are more common than heartworms. They can be spread by fleas and ticks, and they can cause serious health problems if left untreated. Intestinal worms and heartworms can be treated with prescription heartworm medicine for dogs, but the best way to prevent them is through monthly treatments that kill both heartworm larvae and intestinal worms.
If your pet has tested positive for intestinal worms in the past, you need to keep up these monthly treatments for as long as he lives. And also test him annually for new infections or re-infections from previous ones that were missed during the previous testing.
Pets Are Infected Before They Are Two Years of Age
The most common intestinal worm is hookworm. These worms can be transmitted by dog flea and tick, so it's important to make sure your pet is free from these pests with the use of an appropriate dog flea medicine.
If you live in an area with a lot of rain, consider keeping your dog indoors when it rains so that she doesn't get out in the mud and pick up hookworms from her paws. If this isn't possible because you need to walk your dog without a dog harness, for example, wash her feet thoroughly after every walk.
If you're not sure whether or not your dog is infected with hookworms or other intestinal worms, ask your veterinarian about testing!
Prevention of Heartworms and Intestinal Worms Is Easy
Heartworm and intestinal worm prevention can be administered by you or your veterinarian. Heartworm prevention medicines are administered monthly and inexpensively. Intestinal worm prevention medications are also administered monthly and inexpensively, but typically require that you visit a veterinarian for proper administration. However, once the initial investment is made in these medications (around twenty dollars per month), they are extremely cost-effective!
There is no reason why any pet owner should not be taking advantage of heartworm prevention for dogs. They can save your pet's life and help keep them healthy for many years to come!
