How do you prevent heartworms in dogs naturally?
How to Treat and Prevent Heartworms Naturally
Are You Wondering If There is a Natural Treatment for Heartworms in Dogs?
Is there a way to treat and prevent heartworms naturally without nasty side effects? In this article we’ll be answering these questions. Let’s explore this topic in depth…
So what exactly are heartworms?
Some types of mosquitoes carry a parasite that becomes heartworm once it enters your dog. There they begin to grow and can reach up to 14 inches in length. When the worms mature, they can eventually end up in the heart and pulmonary arteries, causing lung, heart and organ damage. This is what is referred to as “heartworm disease”.
Fact: Dogs cannot catch heartworms from other dogs. The only way they can get heartworms is to be bitten by an infected mosquito.
Conventional heartworm treatment.
Most vets prescribe heartworm “preventive” drugs to be given to your dog year round. Whether they need it or not! Thing is, those heartworm drugs don’t “prevent” anything– they just kill the heartworm larvae if it is already present in your dog. Makes sense that if they can kill heartworm larvae, then they can also harm your dog!
Side effects of conventional heartworm treatment.
Just google “adverse reactions after taking heartworm meds” and you’ll find plenty of reports of dogs suffering . Below is a list of popular heartworm prevention drugs and adverse reactions that have been reported after they were given to dogs:
- REVOLUTION® (selamectin), Topical Parasiticide For Dogs and Cats: Loose stool or diarrhea with blood, vomiting, anorexia, lethargy, salivation, tachypnea, and muscle tremors, pruritis, urticaria, erythema, ataxia, fever, and rare reports of death and seizures in dogs.
- HEARTGARD and TriHeartPlus (ivermectin): Depression/lethargy, vomiting, anorexia, diarrhea, mydriasis, ataxia (staggering), convulsions and hypersalivation.
- INTERCEPTOR (milbemycin oxime): Depression/lethargy, vomiting, anorexia, diarrhea, mydriasis, ataxia (staggering), convulsions and hypersalivation plus weakness.
- SENTINEL (milbemycin oxime): Vomiting, depression/lethargy, pruritus, urticaria, diarrhea, anorexia, skin congestion, ataxia, convulsions, hypersalivation and weakness.
- Proheart 6 (moxidectin): Severe allergic reactions (anaphylaxis): facial swelling, itching, difficulty breathing, collapse; lethargy,not eating or losing interest in food; seizures; vomiting and/or diarrhea, weight loss, increased thirst or urination, weakness, bleeding, bruising; some instances of death.
How to Treat and Prevent Heartworms Naturally
“More and more I’m coming to think that heartworm is really a man-made disease. The heartworm has been out there forever as far as we know, but we don’t read reports of wolves and coyotes being wiped out by heartworm, and yet domestic dogs are falling prey to it. It speaks volumes to what we’re doing wrong in raising these animals.” Dr. William Falconer, a veterinarian with a homeopathic practice in Austin, Texas.
Read: Easy Natural Flea Prevention for Dogs and Cats
Should You Be Concerned About Your Dog Getting Heartworms?
Learning how to treat and prevent heartworms naturally requires an understanding of why domesticated dogs are susceptible in the first place. It really comes down to modern dog keeping methods. Poor quality dog food, over vaccination, and using topical pesticides to control fleas weakens their immune system. It’s a healthy immune system that’s necessary for your dog to be able to deal with heartworm and keep them from becoming a problem.
Fact: Wolves, Foxes and Coyotes don’t get Heartworm Disease.
Canines living in the wild eat mostly raw meat, are un-vaccinated, and don’t get exposed to toxic chemicals used to kill fleas and ticks. They are able to fight off heartworm infestation, or are able to host the parasite, but in small enough numbers so that their health is never threatened.
Our dogs truly have the cards stacked against them unless we start making better choices in our dog keeping practices.
The national average for canine heartworm disease cases is 1.16%.
States most likely to have heartworm infection are – Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Texas, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Montana and Puerto Rico
States with moderate likelihood to have heartworm infection are – New Mexico, Arizona, California, Utah, Kansas, Colorado, Nevada, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Virginia, Delaware, Washington D.C., Maryland, Wyoming, Michigan, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, Hawaii and Alaska.
States with low chances of getting heartworm disease are: Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Iowa, Minnesota West Virginia, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey.
If you live in an area that has a risk of heartworm disease you’ll want to follow these guidelines to treat and prevent heartworms naturally to keep your dog heartworm free:
- Feed a high quality diet including raw meat and bones
- Avoid over vaccination
- Eliminate areas of standing water where mosquitoes can breed
- Use a natural product like Bug Zap Naturally to repel fleas and mosquitos
- Use HWF as maintenance instead of dangerous Heartworm meds
Heartworm Free – HWF Natural Heartworm Treatment for Dogs
HeartWorm Free ™ contains Organic Herbal ingredients. HWF was studied for 4 years for use as a natural heartworm preventative for dogs with 100% success, prior to being retailed as a heartworm preventative. HWF is an excellent effective natural heartworm treatment for dogs.
Here you can find a selection of popular products that were viewed and purchased by other customers based on your interests. Enjoy!
Why Natural Heartworm Treatment Doesn’t Work
Nowadays, you will see a lot of people looking for ways to lead a more natural lifestyle. And some pet owners want to include their animal companions in using green products. Your veterinarian may not frown upon an all-natural, balanced dog food. But he or she will likely take a dim view of using the same approach to your pet’s health. This is especially true in heartworm prevention or treatment. There may be a myriad of articles online about home remedies for this deadly disease. But you must understand that vet prescription is the only option found to be safe and effective.
No Sound Evidence on the Effectiveness of Natural Approach
Some people offer alternative medicine as an addition to the standard approach. It can also be a substitute when conventional treatments are ineffective or unavailable. This doesn’t mean you should consider treatments with no adequate testing, though. The American Heartworm Society emphasizes that there are no herbal remedies that have been proven safe and effective in heartworm prevention or treatment.
Some people push for the natural approach. They view it as an appropriate alternative for standard medicine. This kind of attitude is reprehensible when there is not enough proof to support such a belief. Worse, some people use irrational denigration of conventional medicine to create panic. They scare pet parents away from science-based treatments that could help their furbabies.
ProHeart 12 for Heartworm Prevention
There are effective treatments for dogs that became infected with heartworms. Medications for this disease are available only by veterinary prescription. The damage from heartworm infection can be permanent. For this reason, prevention is your best option. Like any medication, heartworm preventatives are not entirely risk-free. Side effects may be possible. But most are mild and infrequent. Besides, heartworm preventatives have been around for a while now. Many research studies also show their effectiveness.
Last year, the United States’ Food and Drug Administration approved ProHeart 12 (moxidectin). It’s a new heartworm preventive medicine that provides full twelve-month protection for dogs. ProHeart 12 was also approved for other deworming benefits. It has a very low risk of side effects and is usually administered along with annual vaccination.
There are other available heartworm preventive drugs that your vet may prescribe. These include ivermectin, milbemycin, and selamectin.
A few natural ways help diminish the risk that your pet will contract heartworm disease. These include avoiding mosquito exposure and eliminating standing water close to your home. Using mosquito-repellant tactics and immune-boosting methods are also an excellent option. But none of the known home remedies are significant enough for you to skip vet prescriptions.
We understand that overmedication is likely one of your concerns. At Windermere Animal Hospital, we only prescribe the right protection for your pet. We tailor our treatment plan according to the individual risk of the pet for other parasites. Do you want to learn more about how you can keep your dog safe from infections year-round?
Call our clinic today in Fishers, Indiana, at (317) 841-1846 for more information.
