Heartworm Treatment and Preventative Medication Hype The fact that you are reading this information shows that you want what is best for your dog, we all do. You can form your own opinion based on what you have been told, previous experiences or the information published below but I will never give my dogs heartworm preventative medications and here's why... In our thirty plus years of owning dogs we usually had three or more at a time. Of these dogs, Scooter-Belle, Max, Pasha, Ricci, Samantha, Precious, Gimpy, Taffey, Jack, Matilda, Sunny, Sandy, Summer, Cece, SuSE, Rowdy, Kohle, Tank, Duke, and Diego, only Scooter-Belle and Max were ever on preventative and only Gimpy and SuSE ever tested positive for heartworms. Following treatment neither dog was ever put on any preventative but had yearly heartworm checkups until their death at the age of ten and twelve respectively. Presently we have Duke, Kohle, Tank and Diego. Our other dogs have died from old age or problems unrelated to heartworms. None of our dogs are on any type heartworm preventative. We live in a coastal region which is a dark solid blue state according to the heartworm map and we are inundated year round with mosquitoes. If anyone were prime candidates for heartworms it would be our dogs. Yearly testing shows all of our dogs to be heartworm negative. We attribute it to the fact that they are not inundated with annual immunizations (some states are beginning to take notice of the health issues and have changed their immunization laws) (http://www.k911.biz/Petsafety/VaccineDangers.htm). Steroids, antibiotics and other overly prescribed drugs can and do tax a healthy system(http://www.k911.biz/Petsafety/AntibioticsAndSteroids.htm). Prescription drugs are certainly needed at times but minimal use seems to be the key to good health. Let me be clear that I am not against heartworm treatment only the preventative. If any of our dogs tested positive, they would be treated but I would try holistic methods first before resorting to drugs like Melarsomine, which was used with SuSE. SuSE was adopted off the streets and was emaciated and close to death. The vet said if she was not treated within the next two weeks she would be dead so we opted for this new quick fix treatment rather than what had been used successfully with Gimpy years before. Melarsomine (Immiticide) is an arsenic-containing compound which requires injection deep in the lumbar (back) muscle instead of intravenously. It is usually given twice, 24 hours apart but for SuSE a third injection three weeks later was needed. With her first injection she screamed in excruciating pain. It was terrible to witness and absolutely no dog of ours will ever again receive this treatment. When Gimpy was diagnosed the Internet had not been born so it took some real searching to come up with a viable solution for her since the treatment used at that time was thiacetarsamide sodium (which contains arsenic) and we weren't too happy about that. This drug, given in the vein through a catheter can cause severe tissue damage if any of the drug touches surrounding tissue. This drug is still used today but some dogs become so ill from the drug that treatment must sometimes be discontinued. Almost all animals have to be hospitalized for several days of treatment with thiacetarsamide sodium. Gimpy was treated by our old vet who after 56 years in practice, retired in 2007. Although he used a drug in his treatment for heartworms the treatment itself was unlike any I had ever heard about and had a very high success rate. Each week for six weeks I brought Gimpy in for an injection and then took her home afterward. Every other week blood work was done and she was checked for microfilaria until she was completely free of the parasite. It was not at all a difficult thing for her and unlike today's treatments, did not require a vet stay or confinement of any kind. If I found that the holistic route did not work, I would use this method next. With all of the dogs we have had of various breeds and with differing health problems as they aged, never would we have knowingly given them poison on a regular basis as a "preventative". If you think you are not giving something harmful to your dog, read carefully the ingredients and discover for yourself what the side effects are of each one. ~Mel
Please note that this article is meant as an alternative to traditional thinking and animal care. As always, please discuss any changes in your dog's medical care with your veterinarian. Heartworms may infect a host for up to 2 years before any signs or symptoms are visible, and often when they are diagnosed it may be too late for some pets. Heartworms are an infectious parasitic transmitted by mosquitoes that invades major organs in dogs and cats like the lungs, pulmonary arteries and heart. Heartworms grow and multiply within the pet body and can survive for up to 5 years. Heartworms cause damage and block smaller arterial vessels in your pets key organs leading to organ damage and a multitude of health complications. The symptoms of a heartworm infestation are often difficult to recognize or may be overlooked or discounted as merely flu or cough-like symptoms.
Treatment to rid a pet of adult heartworms by a vet is a costly procedure and involves exposing your pet to arsenic poisoning treatments to kill the adult heartworms. This procedure can be fatal for aged pets or ones in deteriorating physical condition.
For years consumers have been mislead on the subject of heartworm. Here are the facts. Most veterinarians will have you believe that giving a daily or monthly pill to prevent heartworm is safer than the treatment to cure it. Once again, the veterinarians may not have the right answer here. Let's look at the bottom line:
Heartworm prevention treatments are a chemical insecticide, no matter what brand or what type. The chemicals alone are enough to potentially cause disease, here is why:
Side Effects The chemicals used in most of these heartworm preventatives can cause serious side effects like vomiting, diarrhea, weakness and convulsions even in the healthiest animals. It is not uncommon for pet owners to rush into vet offices confused about what is wrong with their pet. Here is the irony, when the vets see these symptoms, they usually want to start your pet on a heartworm "preventative" medication thinking the symptoms may be heartworm, and they want to take precautions. Remember Proheart 6 (Heartworm drug pulled from the US market in Sept. 2004 after dog deaths mounted). Thankfully, a portion of the veterinary industry has acknowledged these dangers. Known as "alternative vets" they are open to re-examining treatments for the safest and most effective "alternative." Some actually recommend not giving your pet the chemical heartworm preventatives. And many of those alternative veterinarians believe that long term use of heartworm prevention is a link in the chain of diseases such as skin allergies, arthritis, liver and kidney diseases and many types of cancers.
Coming to Our Senses in Prevention -Will Falconer, D.V.M. Certified Veterinary Homeopath Looking at the “real world” of nature as an example, we see that parasites live only slightly at the expense of their hosts, those animals they live in or on. It is only the weakest, or least fit, animals in a population who die of parasitic disease. And, if you think about it, doesn’t this make sense? If parasites killed all their hosts, where would they live? So, the norm of parasite existence in nature is not to kill the host animal. Why, then, are we seeing dogs dying of heartworm disease? And why are cats now even being diagnosed with this canine parasite, and probably dying of it? I examine these questions in detail, and present a preventative program based on sound, natural principals, a program that works with your animal’s innate intelligence to successfully keep your dog (or cat) free of this parasite. For a bit more than the cost of a month’s worth of preventative drugs, you can arm yourself with effective, natural heartworm prevention, and make your animal healthier while you prevent this parasite from invading your pet. Did You Know? The administration of common monthly heartworm preventatives has been associated with autoimmune disease and even death in some purebred dogs. If your pet is on a heartworm preventative, the mosquito's will still bite them. True prevention would mean you have to get to the source of the problem, the biting mosquito.
Find these herbs at any health food store or vitamin shop in your area. Ask them for dosages and frequency for your specific pet. Here are guidelines for dosages - but check with your vet or health store for dosages: The dosing for dogs: (as a preventative only)
The recommendations above are for a 250mg capsule. For liquid preparations = 10-15 drops usually is equivalent to 1 - 250mg capsule. The above schedule can be administered during mosquito season, and in areas where there is a high incidence of heartworm. We continue to remind you, don't get caught up in the hype. As you can see there is always a healthier choice to chemicals that can work. However, if heartworm is prevalent in your area, you should consider contacting an alternative veterinarian for additional natural support. Pet Consumer Report promotes an insecticide-free philosophy. The evidence is overwhelming to us. As always, we encourage you to make your own decision. Perhaps you will look into this more on your own. Natural prevention can be accomplished quite easily and inexpensively. |
