I live in Ohio and watched one of my dogs die of heartworm - or technically she died of the reaction to the treatment for heartworm after she was found to have them. She had been coughing for months and a local vet said maybe kennel cough but not much was known about it and she was a free running dog in the country. A few months later I took her in for her annual vaccinations and new vet said heartworm had been bad in Ohio the last year or so and suggested we test. She came back positive so he started the treatment before we left that day telling me there were risks but she would likely die for sure if something wasn't tried. That night she came home and collapsed in the front yard and I watched her die. Her heart stopped. 10 PM at night, nearest emergency vet was almost 2 hours away but didn't matter cause I didn't know they existed at the time and they were in another city and no emergency listings in local phone books. Vet I had taken her to had gone to his daughters graduation that night and called back too late but said he probably wouldn't have been able to do anything anyway. Autopsy showed she had more worms than heart left. I will NEVER not treat a dog for heartworm again. Period. Kat
On 7/20/11, Natalie <at...@optonline.net> wrote: > I guess it's "you're damned if you do and damned if you don't"! > > -----Original Message----- > From: felvtalk-boun...@felineleukemia.org > [mailto:felvtalk-boun...@felineleukemia.org] On Behalf Of Christiane Biagi > Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 7:26 PM > To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org > Subject: Re: [Felvtalk] Heartworm drugs > > I'm not one to give my pets all sorts of meds.... but, if you've ever seen > a dog die from heartworm or actually seen what these critters look like, > you'd err on the side of caution. I'm in NY and we've gone to year round. > While true that the mosquitoes carrying the larvae don't fly up here from > warmer climates, dogs& cats come all the time. A NY mosquito bites a > Florida infected dog & then bites a NY dog--you've got a chance. And these > days, folks travel all the time & everywhere with their pets. Now there are > places where the climate basically prevents larvae from forming... but for > most of the country, there are at least times of the year when mosquitoes > live that any cat or dog is at risk. But there are choices for HW meds... > Certain breeds should never take Heartgard (Ivermectin), for example. Thing > is that HW is a silent killer. By the time the animal shows symptoms, the > disease is well advanced. And the treatment is fraught with risk and a real > strain on the animal's system. There are some newer protocols to reduce > risk--Dr. at U of FL has done major studies which are published. Sadly, > there is no treatment for cats. > > -----Original Message----- > From: felvtalk-boun...@felineleukemia.org > [mailto:felvtalk-boun...@felineleukemia.org] On Behalf Of Natalie > Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 10:53 AM > To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org > Subject: [Felvtalk] Heartworm drugs > > > > > Heartworm drugs for pets; Big Pharma's cash cow - In a seemingly > diabolical plot, veterinarians and pharmaceutical companies have teamed up > in a marketing campaign to frighten pet guardians into giving year-round > heartworm preventatives to their cats, as well as dogs. These so-called > experts say they're doing this to improve protection for individual pets, > but the facts say their motives may be less pure. > > > o > <http://www.naturalnews.com/033060_heartworm_drugs_pet_health.html#ixzz1SeoF > YKZ8> > http://www.naturalnews.com/033060_heartworm_drugs_pet_health.html#ixzz1SeoFY > KZ8 > > > > > We had a discussion about Revolution a while back - here is a great article > on all wormers, and about Revolution, which is technically: Selamectin is > also used to treat ear mites and some intestinal worms; adverse reactions > include hair loss at the site of application, diarrhea, vomiting, muscle > tremors, anorexia, lethargy, salivation, rapid breathing, and contact > allergy. > > And how veterinarians are handing out these products like candy, etc. > Important "read"! > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > Felvtalk mailing list > Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org > http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org > > > _______________________________________________ > Felvtalk mailing list > Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org > http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org > > > > _______________________________________________ > Felvtalk mailing list > Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org > http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org > _______________________________________________ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org
