Missed your Dog’s Heartworm Treatment Dose? Here’s what to do now.
Dog owners should maintain a tight schedule of heartworm medication treatment.
The American Heartworm Society suggests a heartworm treatment that lasts for 12 months. Pet owners who have opted for heartworm treatment should be very careful about medication schedule and never miss a dose. A missed heartworm pill can be detrimental and leave your pet susceptible to infection.
Heartworm treatment medication includes pills that are known to be effective in terminating larval heartworms younger than 6 weeks old. After reaching adulthood in 45 days, the heartworms start their 6-month journey to lungs and heart, where they develop into a foot-long parasite and become life-threatening.
Heartworm treatment pills do not terminate adult heartworms. In case the owner has missed the pill, it is recommended that the infected dog should be given the does immediately and the medication should continue as per the scheduled date and plan. If the pill is overdue by 2 weeks or more, the infected dog should be taken to the veterinarian for a heartworm test six months from the date of the missed pill.
It is critical to make monthly heartworm medication a part of your dog’s health regime. Dog owners do tend to forget and it is natural to happen, but it may help if you consider that:
• Heartworm is life-threatening, but can be prevented
• Heartworm infection can happen in any season
• Heartworm disease can deteriorate the health of heart and lungs in dogs and cats
• Heartworm infection can lead to several symptoms from intolerance, frequent vomiting, physical inactivity and in some extreme cases, death as well.
What is the first thing I need to do if I missed a Heartworm Dose?
Pet owners are often confused and given false information by family members, friends and in some cases even by the veterinarians. The fact is it is not necessary to have you pet immediately tested for heartworms if you have missed one month of heartworm treatment dose. The simple answer is that it takes a minimum of 6 months for a pet to become heartworm-positive. It clarifies that even if your pet might have become infected during the time of missed dose, the results will only become heartworm-positive after 6 months of infection.
What to do if you missed a month of Heartworm Treatment?
The first and foremost thing to do if a month has gone by since the last dose of heartworm treatment is to give the dose at the earliest and start the monthly preventative schedule again. During the annual or half-yearly visit, the regular blood heartworm test should be taken, along with a total wellness exam supported by required vaccinations and other laboratory tests. While dog owners should maintain a calendar to maintain heartworm pills, missing a dose should not make you panic as it will not be health risk or harmful to pets in isolated circumstances.
Missing a dose of heartworm medication treatment should not make a pet owner panic. Consult the veterinarian and restart the dose at the earliest to prevent further infection.