Dallas Veterinarian Clinic

Heartworms and Treatment: Everything You Need to Know

What Heartworms Are

Heartworms are parasites that attack animals' hearts and often cause them to experience congenital heart failure. Congenital heart failure is a serious health issue that frequently kills its victim. It is possible to cure congenital heart failure in your dog or cat if provided with adequate care, such as by a Dallas veterinarian clinic.

How They are Transmitted

"Heartworms" are transmitted from one animal to another and are most often transmitted by mosquitoes. If your animal is bit by a mosquito that carries heartworms, then your cat or dog will likely acquire the disease. The parasite will quickly makes its way to the animal's heart and they usually live in the heart's right ventricles and in nearby blood vessels.

How Heartworms Kill Pets

Heartworms bread through male and female interaction, so they do not reproduce themselves without help. A male and female heartworm that resides inside your animal can produce millions of heartworms. If too many heartworms are produced and survive, they will eventually take over the animal's system and kill the animal. This is why heartworms must be taken seriously and treated (exterminated) by chemicals provided by a Dallas veterinarian clinic.

When a mosquito bites your cat or dog, it sucks up blood that contains tiny heartworms that are circulating through the animal's blood stream. It then carries these heartworms with it to the next animal that it bites. This is the most common method that heartworms are transmitted from animal to animal. The babies infiltrate the next animal's body when it is bit and those babies grow up to become reproducing adults. Of course, the cycle repeats at this point and yet another animal is put in serious danger of death from congenital heart disease.

How Long Can My Pet Live with Heartworms?