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Dog Heartworm Medicine Is Available By
Prescription
There are two main types of dog heartworm medicine:
preventative treatments and cures. It is preferable to use the
preventative heartworm medications if you live in an area where
mosquitoes are common, or if you are planning on traveling to one of
those locations with your dog. If your dog already has heartworms,
there are other medicines that you can buy to treat the infestation.
Veterinarians have been researching preventative heartworm
medications since the early 1980's. Although the first preventative
medications had to be administered every day, there are now several
over-the-counter heartworm medicines that only need to be
administered once a month.
Sentinel and Interceptor kill immature worms.
Preventative heartworm medication works by killing off the immature
worms. This keeps heartworms from growing to their full size inside
of your dog's heart and lungs. While no preventative medication can
ever be 100% effective, there are several once-a-month medicines
that have been shown to work very well to prevent heartworm
infestations. Two good brands to consider are Sentinel and
Interceptor because both medications will protect your dog from
other parasites as well.
Some dog owners have noticed side effects from heartworm shots, so
the daily or once-a-month pills are recommended. If you are worried
about which type of heartworm medicine will be the most effective
for your dog, then you should ask your vet.
If your dog already suffers from heartworm, you should start a
treatment program as soon as you can. The larger the worms get, the
harder it will be to treat your dog.
Heartworm treatments will also require multiple doses in order to be
effective. This is due to the nature and location of the adult
worms. It is important to make sure that the worms are not all
killed at once for two reasons. First, since this medication is
toxic to your dog as well as the worms, high doses can be dangerous.
Second, it is possible that the dead worms will suffocate your dog
if too many are killed and flushed out of the lungs at once.
With a lot of time and care, an adult heartworm infestation can be
treated. However, preventative measures are generally much safer and
more effective.
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