My dog is lethargic and sad after heartworm treatment. Is this normal?

I'm sorry Aria has heartworms! The fact that she is lethargic and has a decrease in appetite is concerning, and this can be due to the sudden death of a large number of worms from the treatment. When a dog becomes lethargic as well as has a significant decrease in appetite, it's recommended to have them seen by a vet right away. I would take her into an ER vet clinic; if there isn't one in your area, there will be a vet on call for emergencies. The information to reach that vet is found on a clinic's answering machine or website. She needs to be checked out by a vet to make sure everything is ok. I hope this helps and that she feels better soon!

Any change in breathing warrants a trip to the vet for a recheck. While it’s possible that there’s nothing wrong, you could also be noticing the beginning of a complication of heartworm treatment. Pulmonary thromboembolism can occur when dying worms become lodged in the small blood vessels of the lungs. Your vet might want to take a chest x-ray.

For most dogs, symptoms of whipworm would be diarrhea possibly with blood in it, but I wouldn't expect lethargy unless she has so many whipworms that she's anemia. I would recommend letting your vet know this is going on -- they may want her to come back in for evaluation. I'm concerned something else could be going on totally unrelated to the whipworms.

I would take him to the emergency clinic if you can. My main fear is always an allergic reaction which can cause shock and be life-threatening. It may be that Othello just needs some pain medication or a steroid but better safe than sorry.

Those symptoms can be normal the first day after such an intense treatment with Immiticide and also with Tramadol. The side effects that can be seen with Tramadol are as follows: "Tramadol appears to be well tolerated in dogs. Potentially, it could cause a variety of adverse effects associated with its pharmacologic actions, including: CNS effects (excessive sedation, agitation, anxiety, tremor, dizziness), or GI effects (inappetence, vomiting, constipation to diarrhea)." With that said, I would still opt to get Clementine examined by a vet soon, especially if her gait continues to be affected and if she isn't drinking water and having normal urinations. Her gums should always look pink, and her breathing should be normal (not panting). I hope that your pet Clementine is able to recover well from her rough 1st day of heartworm treatment. Best wishes and take care.

I am sorry to hear about Leia! If you feel she is really lethargic then I would recommend bringing her in to the vet for an exam. Lethargy is a very vague symptom so there are many different possible causes, but your vet can do a physical examination to try to narrow down the possiblities for her lethargy. This in combination with a good history and sometimes labwork will help pinpoint the cause of her lethargy and how best to treat the condition.

The injection can be very painful. This could be why she is shivering. If it persists, contact your veterinarian and ask about pain management. If she becomes extremely lethargic or extremely painful, have her rechecked by your veterinarian or at the nearest veterinary ER.