Heartworms in Dogs

For non-dog lovers, raising a dog can be a daunting task. Imagine the effort and money you have to expend. Feeding, cleaning and most importantly housebreaking the dog would take a considerable chunk of a busy person’s time. Regular visit to a vet would mean a dent on the pocket. But for dog lovers, these are not insurmountable challenges. And these tasks are very rewarding. A dog lover would look forward to the many pleasurable hours with his pet.

Caring for a dog would mean more than the usual feeding and cleaning. The general welfare and safety of the pet should be ensured. The health of a pet is a responsibility that should be taken seriously by the owner. A pet’s death could be a traumatic experience for the owner and could make him shy away from caring for another pet.

Heartworm is a fatal disease that infests dogs. Heartgard is one of the most popular pet medicines to prevent canine heartworm diseases. It is an anthelminthic (dewormer) that eliminates heartworm larvae. One tablet of heartgard can be given monthly to a dog with a body weight of up to 25 pounds. The tablet is taken orally so it is advisable to have it crushed and mixed with dog food.

Heartgard has no known side effects if the recommended dosage is followed. The dog would have dilated pupils, a considerable body weight loss, manifest shaking or trembling movement if an over dosage is administered.

Some dog breeders though believe that heartgard causes dog infertility. There is a wide spread misconception that preventive medicines for heartworm also causes infertility. A breeder who has invested time and money would be greatly disappointed if no pups would result from his efforts. Dog infertility could result from many factors. The most common is the timing of breeding. This accounts for 80% of dog infertility. The time of ovulation was miscalculated. This can be corrected by closely monitoring the ovulation period of the female dog. Another reason for dog infertility is if the male dog is infertile. Bringing the male dog to a vet for testing will solve this problem. A bacterium that infects the dog could also cause infertility. Infertility can also be caused by heartworm infestation. There is no truth to the belief that heartgard or any other heartworm disease medicine could cause dog infertility.

The dog’s health should be a foremost consideration of a pet owner. The joys a person experience with his pet dog is priceless. After all a dog is man’s best friend.

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