Coming to an animal hospital can sometimes be overwhelming for a pet owner. The moment you walk in the room you’re asked many questions about your fur baby. At the Albemarle Animal Hospital we strive to keep our pet owners educated and aware, well because, you are the voice of your pet when you come! One of the most important things in your pet’s life, especially in the state of North Carolina, is being on heartworm prevention!
We offer many options for prevention for your cats and dogs, but which one should your pet be on? We decided to make it a little easier for you to decide by providing a list of preventions we carry, how they are administered, and the perks of each!
Heartworms
Heartworm disease is a serious and potentially deadly disease. So what exactly is this disease and why is it such a big deal? According to the American Heartworm Society the average number of heartworm – positive dogs per clinic nationwide is up by 21.7%. Heartworms are transmitted from dog to dog through mosquitos.
If untreated, the heartworms can take over the pets body and cause damage to the lungs and arteries making the quality of life for your pet unbearable. Living in North Carolina, I’m sure you know what mosquitos are like. They are out all the time, year round. This is why it’s so important
to keep your pet on prevention every month of the year.
K9 Heartworm Prevention
Okay, so let’s talk prevention! The Albemarle Animal Hospital has many options for heartworm prevention. The first thing you need to do is make an appointment with us to consult with one of our doctors to figure out which prevention is right for your baby!
Pro Heart: Pro heart is an injection for dogs given by a doctor or a technician at the clinic that lasts for 6 months. Rather than a pill, your pet will be given this one shot twice a year to cover their heartworm prevention. This is a great option for the owners that sometimes forget about a
pill every month. This prevention can be given to pets 6 months and older.
Interceptor: This product is a monthly chew tablet that protects your dog against heartworm, and get this, hookworms, roundworms, whipworms,and tapeworms! This options protects your pet from many other harmful worms other than heartworms, which is always a plus! Interceptor can be given to pets 6 weeks and older and 2 pounds and over.
Revolution: Revolution is a monthly topical prevention. This means you apply the product to the skin of your pet. Revolution protects pets from heartworm disease, fleas, ear mites, sarcoptic mange, and ticks. This product can be given to dogs 6 weeks and older.
Feline Heartworm Prevention
We can’t forget about the sweet kitties! Albemarle Animal Hospital offers feline heartworm prevention as well. Just like dogs, cats can be bitten by an infected mosquito and get the same disease.
Revolution: Revolution Plus is a feline heartworm, flea, ticks, ear mites, roundworm, and hookworm prevention. This is a monthly topical prevention for your cat. It can be applied to kittens eight weeks of age and weighing 2.8 pounds or greater.
Now you know what heartworm disease is and why it’s so important to have all your pets on prevention. Albemarle Animal Hospital is happy to answer any other questions you have! Schedule an appointment today to consult with our doctors about which prevention your furry friend should be on!
