Heartworm Test Hi everyone! I haven't been around here much since losing Sophie because it felt strange to be where I spent so much time asking things about her. We adopted a yorkie back in January that had been treated for heartworm at the shelter before we brought him home and we were told to retest him to make sure the treatment was successful. Our vet recommended waiting about 8 months to reduce the chance of a false positive - so he is due for his test at the end of this month and I am starting to freak out. Has anyone had a dog treated for heartworm before and did the dog test negative for the retest? He has been taking Heartgard every month since his treatment was completed and his x-rays showed it was a mild case of worms based on there being no significant changes to his heart and lungs. Our vet and the shelter have both said it is rare that the heartworms weren't killed off with treatment but I am so nervous that I can't even think straight at the moment. Plus, he will be tested for tick diseases and when he came to Canada the found a fully engorged tick on him. I can't think of the name of the treatment he was given at the moment but I do know he was treated with an anti-biotic, Heartgard and then was given three injections at different times over the span of 2 months. If necessary I can upload copies of his adoption medical record with all the information about what he was given and the timing of everything. I am trying to remain calm but this is driving me insane. I am really hopeful that it comes back negative and we can move on from this fear with him. |
Quote:
I wouldn't be too worried about it at this point. I would expect the retest to come back negative. |
I don't have any experience either but it sounds like everything was done that needed to be done so I am sure he will come through this healthy and happy. It's normal to worry about our loved ones and the waiting is always the worst part. We'll keep him in our prayers. PS: We'd love to see a pic of your furbaby! |
Quote:
|
I don't have any experience either, just wanted to say I can understand your worry, and the wait now for the re-test. How old is your lil rescue and what is his name. Yes, pictures please, you know how we all love Piccies :) Keeping you and your lil boy in my thoughts and prayers. |
Last summer we tested our sweetie for heartworms (Dirofilariasis). It was negative, thank God! Now we give her pills against heartworms every month mainly from April until October. It is very important to keep your sweety protected. Here is a read that might be useful for everyone: https://yorkie.life/heartworm-dirofi...-be-prevented/ |
Quote:
|
Thanks everyone. I am just really paranoid about it but he seems to be doing fine so I am trying to just ignore it until he goes to have it done. We plan to keep him on heartworm year prevention year round despite living in Ontario and the risk is minimal during the summer. Our new little man's name is Bronx. We kept the name he had with the shelter because he responded to it and he had already been through so much. He was picked up in New Mexico and tested positive for heartworm, then he traveled to Ontario, Canada for his treatment. He was in the shelter for a couple of weeks, then went to a foster home during his treatment, then we adopted him and then we knew there was a chance we would be moving again a few months after we brought him home. Figured we didn't want to change too much for him. He is about 4 years old and has made a lot of progress so far in terms of his anxiety. He used to hide in his crate all the time and now he spends all day near one of us and loves to play and be pet. We put him in basic training and it really helped our bond with him and his trust with us. He still has rough days and there are certain things that cause major shut down mode and anxiety (buses, sidewalks, storms...bananas lol) but we are thrilled that he has become more comfortable with us! So I am having trouble getting pictures to show up on my computer and cannot for the life of me figure out how to do it from my phone so here is a link to his instagram. (I am not trying to advertise it in this post or looking for followers...I just cant get the pictures to work and have been trying all weekend...but he is adorable so I want to show him off!) https://www.instagram.com/bronx_the_yorkie/ |
He looks beautiful and happy! |
I'm glad you're keeping him on the heartworm preventative. I checked the heartworm incidence maps for Canada, and although Ontario is lower than many places in the US, it's still a moderate risk, and definitely the highest incidence in Canada. See: Real-Time Map (306 cases of heartworms in Ontario in 2017, and 119 cases so far in 2018). https://www.albertaanimalhealthsourc...rtworm-disease |
Bronx looks well loved and very spoiled, what a lucky little boy he is to have you for his new momma, he is just adorable. BTW, I love his name, I was born and raised in The Bronx, NY lol. I have always loved that name for a pup. In the USA our dogs must stay on heart worm preventative all year. Before we can get another round of pills our pups have blood work done to make sure they don't have heart worms before our vet will give us a script for another year. Always better safe then sorry ;):) |
Quote:
|
Quote:
We need to have our pups tested before getting another round of heartworm meds in the spring. He was an exception this year because of the treatment he received but next spring, he will be on the same timeline as other dogs (hopefully!). |
Heartworm negative! Now if he would just recover from this pancreatitis...we could all move forward without worry. |
Great news. Recovery takes time and times seems to just draaaaag when our babies don't feel well |
All times are GMT -8. The time now is 11:07 PM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Copyright ©2003 - 2018 YorkieTalk.com
Privacy Policy - Terms of Use