First the good news. Daisy, our last foster mom, will be going home today. Her new family is excited to be getting her and we’re very confident this is a great match. Her adopter has been out to visit several times and Daisy went on a field trip to her new home yesterday. Later today Daisy will have her “go home” physical and go to her new family this afternoon.
The bad news is that a routine screening has shown that Daisy has heartworms. As their name implies, heartworms live inside the dog’s heart. Needless to say, this is a serious condition that will have to be treated.
Every dog adopted from CCHS is screened for heartworms. Blood is drawn and examined under a microscope. The microfilaria could be seen swimming in Daisy’s blood indicating she was infected. The worms are transferred from one dog to another via mosquito bites. Left unchecked, the worms take up residence in the heart and will eventually cause severe complications. The disappointing thing is that heartworm disease can be easily prevented by giving the dog a pill once a month. Once infected, however, treatment is not so easy.
Sometime next week Daisy will be given injections with a drug to kill the adult heartworms already in her heart. As the worms die they will break down into pieces and eventually get eliminated from her body. The problem is that if the breakdown is too fast the pieces are too large and can cause blockages in her circulatory system. So for five weeks or so after the treatment Daisy will have to be kept as quiet as possible. After that period she will be treated again, this time to kill the baby heartworms circulating in her blood.
Our house is anything but a quiet place and Daisy’s adopters have agreed to take her now and care for her during these treatments. The plans for enrolling her in dog training class have had to be put on hold as has scheduling her for spay surgery.
Three weeks ago I wrote A Healthy Investment detailing the type of medical care CCHS provides for the dogs they take in. They wind up dealing with heartworm positive dogs several times each year. At a private clinic the cost of the treatment would be close to $1,000. The fact that they are willing to do these treatments shows how seriously they take the health of the homeless animals they take into the Shelter.
If you have a dog, please be sure to have it tested for heartworms and be sure to keep up with the preventative medication. This is a disease that does not have to happen.
Thanks for the update on Daisy. I've been checking regularly to see how she is doing. I'm so sorry to hear that she has heartworm, but glad to know that her new family wants to take care of her through the treatment. We faced a similar situation almost five years ago when the dog we adopted from the Robinson Co. shelter, Zoe, who had been surrendered with her pups, tested positive once we got her home. Unfortunately, the Robinson County Humane Society either didn't have the money or commitment to pay for the treatment, but we couldn't bear the thought that she might be put down, so we paid for the treatments and she came through them just fine, though it was difficult to keep her quiet! I'm sure Daisy will have a happy outcome as well and will be cared for by a family who will love her.
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