It’s that time of year again.  South Dakota's pesky mosquito will be out and about. 

For those of you that do not give a heartworm preventative year around you will have to remember to start giving it to your pets soon.  We recommend starting the first week of April if you do not give it year around.  One of the name brand heartworm preventative medicines we carry is Heartgard.  It is a once a month chewable tablet that owners need to give to their pets.  There is both a dog and a cat Heartgard.  Yes even cats can get heartworm. 

The doctor may recommend having a heartworm test done on your dog even if you have been giving heartgard. It depends on when your dog was last tested.  Dogs that are only given the preventative seasonally may be asked more frequently to be tested for heartworms.  A simple blood test can be preformed to make sure they do not have the heartworm infection prior to giving Heartgard. 

Heartgard is not the treatment for heartworm disease.  Adulticide therapy which consists of the drug melarsomine is expensive and dogs can go into shock, DIC, and die as the worms are being killed off by the medicine.  There is currently no therapy to treat cats that are infected with heartworm.  This is why the preventative is so important and is the right health choice for your pet.