Just found out my dog has heartworms

Thanks GinaH and loves-da-pits. It really is a great Mother's Day present to have him home and complication free. He still seems to be doing great. I don't think he cares for the crate too much, but he's not complaining either. He ate almost all his food yesterday. I figured that was great considering he had been eating a different food at the vets (we forgot to take some food over there) and it gave him an upset tummy. He's still a little more mellow than usual, but not too much. He always was a pretty calm dog. I'm just so very glad to have him home. :mrgreen:

 

Well, week one has gone by with absolutely no complications! Yay! I know we're not 'out of the woods yet', but I'm still so relieved. At least thats some good news.

 

I am glad to hear you guys have made it one week already. I know it would be soo hard to keep my guys calm for any period of time.

While we are on the subject, I was wondering what people prefer for heartworm treatment, the monthy pills or the injection. I was looking to switch to the injection but just wanted some feedback on what others thought of it. Getting my dogs to take their pills is quite a hassle and I am running out of ways to slip it to them.

 

if your dogs hate pills you could give them revolution or advantage duo.

 

thanks for the tip kylie. Next time we are at the vets I will disscus it with him.

 

if they sell advantage duo get that. it is cheaper than revolution, although i have found ti takes a little longer to dry.

 

Well, I use the Heartgard monthly treatment. It's not the pill form - it's almost like a treat. All of them love it. If you buy your HW treatment online or anything like that - a lot of places sell only the pill form. Concerns about shipping the other (it has meat in it) in an uncontrolled enviroment. But if you get it from your vet, they should have it. Not sure how it compares to others price-wise, as that's the only kind I've used.

 

THIS IS CALLED IVERMECTIN, A 1% AQUEOUS SOLUTION. IT IS FORMULATED FOR TREATMENT AND PREVENTION OF HEARTWORMS IN SWINE AND COWS. HOWEVER, BECAUSE OF THE TYPE OF BREED THAT PIT BULLS ARE, THIS MEDICATION IS VERY EFFECTIVE IN SMALL DOSES. THE BOTTLE IS APPROXIMATELY $40 AT A FEED STORE AND WILL LAST YOU FOR SEVERAL YEARS, DEPENDING ON HOW MANY DOGS YOU HAVE. THE SOLUTION NEEDS TO BE REFRIGERATED AND WE USUALLY COVER THE TOP WITH JUST A PIECE OF TAPE AFTER EACH USE. PURCHASE A 3CC SYRINGE WITH THE BOTTLE. THE MEDICATION SHOULD BE ADMINISTERED AS FOLLOWS: 1/2CC PER 50 LBS, WHICH CAN BE BROKEN INTO 1 UNIT (NOT 1CC) PER 10LBS. THIS DOES NOT NEED TO BE INJECTED, BUT JUST SQUEEZED OUT ONTO THE DOG'S FOOD. THIS ONLY NEEDS TO BE DONE ONCE A MONTH ON THE SAME DATE. :y_the_best:

 

Well, we've gone through 3 weeks of quiet time during the treatment. So far, no complications whatsoever. At this point, I don't expect that there will be any. Now, we just have to get through 1 more week, and hope that this got rid of all the heartworms. I'll post an update after we see the vet next weekend.

 

we use ivermectin on our dogs and have never had a hw problem. and it does not affect their health in anyway.