Why is my dog whimpering with back pain after heartworm treatment?

hThanks for visiting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Heartworm treatment can be rough on your pets body. This involves injections given by your vet on 3 separate occasionas. The main concern after the treatment is creating a pulmonary embolism, or clot in the airway, which lead s to shortness of breath, lethargy, and inappetance. A bloated abdomen cannot be determined in this postiion and often requires a physical examination. A bloated abdomen from a heart condition if often not seen unless the heart is very far gone. This would have been likely detected in the work-up for your fur baby to determine if your pet is in congestive heart failure via a chest x-ray. Right sided congestive heart failure is what leads to a bloated abdomen. I hope that this helps and if you still have concerns about your pets health after starting heartworm treatment, then the next best step is a proper physical exam to determine if any heart murmurs exist and potentially repeat x-rays of the chest and abdomen if the physical exam warrants these. Best of luck with your fur baby Ayla moving forward. Take care. : )

Injection site reaction is common after these injections as they are given deep in the musculature. If there was any movement or any residue that got outside of the injection, then the reaction seems to be worse. At 5 weeks, it should not be painful anymore, although a firm swelling is likely to still remain. I would contact your vet for a recheck to make sure there is no infection at the site and nothing else causing a problem

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Yes, sometimes as the worms are dying off that can result in respiratory issues as they dislodge. Paleness and cold extremities can sometimes be seen in patients that have abnormal oxygen delivery which can happen in these cases. Usually the first 2 weeks are critical when treating for heartworms. I recommend that you him evaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment. It would be good to check if he is having any issues with oxygen delivery. Good luck!

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.

This treatment could cause lethargy, it's quite common and this is one of the reason restriction is a must. if she becomes too lethargic you might need to take her to the ER, especially if you notice abnormal breathing.

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!

Hello. It would be very unusual to get a injection site reaction 2 weeks later, & for it to be down from the original injection site. My guess is this might be a benign fatty lump called a lipoma, so just schedule a visit with your veterinarian at your earliest convenience to check this out. If your dog is an older pet, then lipomas can be quite common. Hopefully, that is all it is & she should be just fine ( but I am sorry she was heartworm positive ). Thanks for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.