My poor dog...She has heartworms :-(

Steph I am so sorry to hear this and I really hope everything goes well. I have not heard of Heartworms before. So I do not know what the symptoms or the Danger is. I hope I will never find out. You and your Dog will be in my Thoughts and I really hope it all goes well. Please keep me informed. Hugs to you, Sweety

Hopefully you caught it soon enough and she will be ok. I hope all goes well for you and her. I have taken my pup to the vet a few times now and Im getting her shots so she wont get anything like that. Good luck to you!!

I am sorry to hear that your dog is sick. I don't have much experience with heartworm but I knew a lady whos dog had it. The dog was very sick but it did end up living. I hope all turns out well for you and your dog. And yes, I knew about getting heartworm from mosquitos and I was shocked when I found out..

I'm so sorry to hear that.....but don't give up hope.If the infestation is not to far along the treatment can be very effective.I had a Doberman that ended up with heartworms several years ago.The vet only gave him a 50% chance of survival....but he made it.The hardest part was trying to keep him from getting to excited after the treatment and he had to be on a Aspirin regiment for several weeks after to keep his blood thinned out.He lived fro quite a few more years after all that. I learned my lesson from all that and every dog I have had since has been on Interceptor year round.All it takes is one small pill or chewable once a month to prevent this.The cost may seem a little high for the medication.....mine runs about $6 per pill....but the treatment can be very expensive....mine ended up being nearly $600.There is also a shot(heartguard) which is given every six month.....that way you don't have to remember to give the pill every month and your vet will send you a reminder when your dog is due for his/her next shot.If your dog has never been on heartworm prevention before you should get him tested before you start him on any kind of treatment.....because if they have heartworm the medication can kill them. I wish your dog all the best and I hope she will come out okay.Keep us posted on how she's doing.Take care!!

The treatment for heartworms is quite a bit safer than it used to be. Years ago when my mother's dog had heartworms, basically they poisoned the dog to kill the worms. Her dog was very sick for a long time. Then we had a dog that got heartworms and was not strong enought for the treatment and we had to put her to sleep. Now they have great new treatments that have much less severe side effects. Here in Texas heartworms is almost epidemic. My dogs now get tested once a year and take heartworm preventative monthly.

I'm truly sorry to hear about Sierra. I had a doberman, Pepito was his name, who had heartworms when he was about 9 years old. Thankfully, he survived after being treated for the illness so i believe she will get through this. She looks adorable if she's the one in the picture. Btw, i have a dog that looks like that picture but i wonder if you could clarify what breed it is. Thanks and we're rooting for Sierra!

Stephanie, I am sooo sorry, poor Seirra. I have never heard of this although I know how you feel my Newty-dog is 13 and gets poorly sometimes panicking me so badly I don't know what to do, it's worse than the kids being poorly. I sincerely hope that the medicines work and she's ok! You can always send me a message if you need to unburden yourself about this! Big hugs to you and Seirra!

so sorry about that I am pretty sure that she will be okay after treatment. I am taking mine next month to get tested for it

Yes I had a dog that got heartworms and was even on the treatment at the time. It turned out just fine. Medicine today has advanced even more then when this happened. They get rid of the heartworms today with treatment and then you will just need to give the dog one pill every month or one pill every 3 months for the heartworms. Don't worry all will be fine.

Oh I am so sorry. I don't know much about the treatment, I have heard that it is a terrible thing for the poor dog. I do know that this summer I am going to do the prophylactic treatments. Beside our house is a large field. The ground is uneven and it is always moist and has hay growing in it. The mosquitos are so abundent. I am definitely going to put my dog on the treatments. We have been fortunate so far, but I am not going to push my luck. Best of luck with your dog.

I am so sorry that you and your beloved companion are going through this trial. I was under the impression that once they get infected with heartworms there was no saving them, so I am glad to see that there is a treatment. Thank you also for your warning to others, now I will make sure that my dogs have their heartworm shots. I pray it all works out for you two.

I'm really surprised your vet never talked to you about heartworms during any of your visits! A good vet would always bring that up. If they say they can't help your dog, I would start looking for a second opinion. I know a really awesome vet who works in Florida. He's practically an expert on animals! You probably can't bring your dog to Florida, but if you contact him, he can probably tell you more about heartworm and what can be done for your dog. His email is leecdvm@gmail.com. He has a website at www.allcritters.com. Tell him Angel sent you! I hope that helps! Good luck! - Angel

It's terrible. I'm sorry. Can people have heartworms too?

Heart worms?Seriously Im hearing about it for the first time..May be I and you can search about it in net to learn more about it..Don worry about your pretty dog..It will get well soon...

I'm sooo sorry to hear ablout your beloved Sierra. I had a dog as a child (Bo Derek...my dad named her). She was diagnosed with heartworms at a very late stage, so we ended up having to "put her to sleep". I am pretty sure that if it is caught early on it is curable. In my dogs case, the worms had been completely wrapped around her heart for a long enough time to cause severe damage. Good luck, and God bless!

Sorry to hear that but as you know by now prevention is best by monthly medication. In the early stages heartworms can be treated if dog is in good shape otherwise. It is kind of pricey but can be done. It can work only if in very early stages and they use an IV with small dose of toxins that kill of the worms but it is hard on the dogs system so you must be very careful with them during the process. Ask you Vet if this is possible in her case. My experience is larger breeds do work out many times. Smaller breeds don't always handle this well and it can be faital. Good luck with her.

im sorry to hear about your dog unfortunately i have never heard of this problem before so can not help. i hope everything goes well for her.

poor dog...heartworms killed my dog yesterday, he was in pain for days. now i miss him because he was the most affectionate among all of my dogs. i hope that he is in a better place right now.

Pets is very good, I would love to get someone