Adopting a heartworm positive dog? Care tips & introducing to my dog?

If you are prepared to go through with the treatment and aftercare this dog will require and understand that there are rare complications that that could be fatal, then I say go for it. I've been through heartworm treatment with one of my dogs and it added several wonderful years to his life.

My oldest dog was adopted with heartworms 13 yeas ago and is still doing well, so it certainly can be treated. I am attaching more information on heartworm disease below from the American Heartworm Society and a handout about treatment. https://www.heartwormsociety.org/pet-owner-resources http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=610 Unfortunately, there are a number of variables when it comes to heartworm treatment, so I cannot give you a price estimate, but I would recommend contacting your veterinarian to discuss a price range. Most commonly, we recommend bloodwork, urinalysis and chest x-rays, then decide on which treatment method will be best for them. Good luck! I hope that was helpful and answered your questions. Thanks for using PetCoach.

A "low positive" may mean a low adult heartworm burden. The preventive is to kill any immature heartworm (microfilariae). The doxycyline is to kill the wolbachia bacteria. This is an organism that lives within the heartworm parasite as a symbiont. This portion of the treatment lasts 30 days after which medication is given via injection to kill adult heartworm. Treatment is outlined at the link below. https://d3ft8sckhnqim2.cloudfront.net/images/pdf/HeartwormTreatmentGuide_PetOwnerColor.pdf?1561720859

Heartworm medication should be given to a dog every month, but if a dog does have heartworm, it will take at least six months for a dog to test positive after being infected. I would have Holly checked for heartworm now so she can be put on a preventative if she is negative for it. I hope this helps!

The dogs cannot directly spread heartworm disease between each other. However, mosquitoes can bite your newly adopted dog and if they bite your other two dogs, they could transmit heartworm disease. Make sure your other two dogs have been heartworm tested recently and are receiving heartworm prevention every month without fail. If you do those things, there should not be an issue. :-)

Hello. For the most part, you want to institute a level of exercise reduction so as to decrease the strain on the heart. This should start on the day of diagnosis, & continue with even further reduced exercise when heartworm treatment is started. Once Julius has been properly treated for the heartworms, he can resume normal activity levels. Thank you.

If there is no history of vaccinations, I would have the Distemper / Parvo / Adenovirus vaccine administered (this is a yearly vaccine), the bordetella vaccine and his Rabies vaccination. I recommend heartgard for heartworm prevention along with yearly heartworm testing. Heartgard is a monthly chewable tablet give to prevent heartworm disease. If you live in an area where fleas and ticks are prevalent, I would also suggest a flea / tick preventative such as Nexgard or Bravecto. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns. I am also available via consultation if needed.