{"id":322,"date":"2025-04-15T13:46:39","date_gmt":"2025-04-15T20:46:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.marketplaceveterinary.com\/blog\/?p=322"},"modified":"2025-09-04T13:36:58","modified_gmt":"2025-09-04T20:36:58","slug":"everything-you-need-to-know-about-heartworm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.marketplaceveterinary.com\/blog\/everything-you-need-to-know-about-heartworm\/","title":{"rendered":"Everything You Need to Know About Heartworm"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\"Puppy<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

April is Heartworm Awareness Month. Maybe\u2014hopefully\u2014you already give your dog or cat their heartworm prevention medication regularly. But we believe it\u2019s important to learn what heartworm disease is and why this preventive medicine is critical to your pet\u2019s health<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Heartworm disease<\/a> is caused by the parasite Dirofilaria immitis.<\/em> Adult female heartworms can grow up to 12 inches long and resemble cooked spaghetti noodles. Once a dog or cat gets infected with heartworms, the parasites will grow, settle down in your pet\u2019s heart and pulmonary system, and reproduce.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s as bad as it sounds. Heartworms can cause lung disease, heart failure, and lasting damage to your pet\u2019s organs. Without treatment\u2014and sometimes even with it\u2014your pet can die. The good news is that heartworm prevention<\/a> is a safe and easy way to help your pet avoid this devastating disease. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Do Dogs and Cats Get Heartworm Disease? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One mosquito bite<\/a> is all it takes for your dog or cat to be infected with heartworm. The parasite requires a definitive host for reproduction and an intermediate host to help it spread. All dogs and wild canids are definitive hosts. Here\u2019s a quick breakdown of the life cycle of a heartworm: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. A primary host\u2014dog, wolf, fox, or coyote, for example\u2014has heartworms. The male and female worms reproduce, releasing baby heartworms, called microfilariae, into the dog\u2019s bloodstream. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. One of roughly 30 mosquito species bites the infected dog and ingests microfilariae into its body. The mosquito is the intermediate host that helps heartworm parasites spread. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. The microfilariae mature into larvae inside the mosquito\u2019s gut, a process that takes between 10 and 30 days. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. The larvae migrate to the mosquito\u2019s proboscis. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. The mosquito bites another dog or a cat, transferring heartworm larvae into the bite wound. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  6. The larvae travel into the dog or cat\u2019s bloodstream. This helps them reach the lungs and heart, where they\u2019ll settle down and grow into sexually mature worms. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  7. About 6-9 months after this, the worms will begin to reproduce, spreading microfilariae into the dog\u2019s bloodstream. Many of these microfilariae mature into larvae and adult heartworms inside your pet. \u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    A single adult heartworm can live for 2-4 years in cats or 5-7 years in dogs. Without treatment, the worms will reproduce, multiplying in your dog\u2019s heart and lungs. Dogs can have anywhere from 15 to 250 heartworms inside them at one time. Heartworms have a harder time reproducing in cats, which means most cats only live with 1-6 heartworms. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Spotting Signs\u00a0<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    The earlier you catch and treat your pet’s heartworm disease, the better their prognosis will be. Signs of infection in dogs include coughing, decreased appetite, weight loss, fatigue, and lethargy. Cats may also experience these symptoms and also vomit food or blood.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    If you think your pet has heartworm disease, contact the MarketPlace Veterinary Hospital team at (916) 939-1705. We can perform the diagnostic tests<\/a> your dog or cat needs and decide on a treatment plan. We\u2019ll do everything we can to help your pet. But heartworm prevention is even better than early detection and treatment. And thankfully for you, it\u2019s easy to do!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Prevention Is Key\u00a0<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    The single best way to prevent the disease is to give your pet preventive medication. From the age of about 6-8 weeks, dogs and cats can take heartworm medication as prescribed by a veterinarian.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Some types of medication are given to your pet once a month, while others are administered once or twice a year. If it\u2019s been a while since your pet had heartworm medication, bring them in for a heartworm test as soon as possible. We can prescribe preventive medication if the test is clear and start heartworm treatment if it isn\u2019t. Schedule your pet\u2019s appointment today<\/a>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    April is Heartworm Awareness Month. Maybe\u2014hopefully\u2014you already give your dog or cat their heartworm prevention medication regularly. But we believe it\u2019s important to learn what heartworm disease is and why this preventive medicine is critical to your pet\u2019s health. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,5,21],"tags":[475,382,215,214,216,217,213],"class_list":["post-322","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-fleas-ticks-heartworm","category-for-dogs","category-cats-meow","tag-fleas","tag-heartworm","tag-heartworm-awareness-month","tag-heartworm-prevention","tag-how-to-prevent-heartworm","tag-signs-of-heartworm","tag-what-is-heartworm"],"yoast_head":"\nEverything You Need to Know About Heartworm<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Heartworm prevention is key to your pet's health. 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