ArcaMax

Pets can run, but they can't hide from heartworm disease, which occurs in all 50 states. Without heartworm protection, even indoor cats hiding under the bed or dogs in states where heartworm isn't especially common (like California or Nebraska) aren't safe from this potentially fatal disease.

Heartworm's increasing prevalence is complicated to trace. The fact that 1) heartworm is spread by several mosquito species and 2) mosquitoes seem to be increasing in numbers tells only a part of the story. Dr. Stephen Jones, Moncks Corner, SC-based president of the American Heartworm Society, explains that coyotes are carriers for heartworm, and their numbers are climbing in many areas.

Dogs stricken with heartworm can also serve as carriers. Animal shelters and rescue organizations increasingly re-locate dogs to facilities several states away, where adoption possibilities are greater. Alas, "these dogs aren't always tested first for heartworm. Even if they are tested, sometimes it takes several tests to rule out heartworm, and there are cost limitations (to consider)," explains Dr. Robert Stannard, a board member of the American Heartworm Society "So, heartworm is spread."

To be clear, heartworm is in not contagious from animal to animal. Mosquitoes bite an infected wild canine species (such as coyotes), infected dogs or infected raccoons and then pass the "baby larvae" to other animals, including unprotected dogs, cats or ferrets not on a heartworm preventative.

"In dogs, heartworms can be up to about a foot-long and live in the pulmonary arties and heart for over five years," Jones notes.

While heartworm disease in dogs can be treated, such care is expensive and arduous.

"Certainly, treatment is no fun," Jones says. Recent work by Jones reveals that even if the heartworm treatment appears successful, the disease can leave permanent damage in dogs.

"Because the damage is inside the dog, we don't see it. Some dogs (are) never the same again," Stannard says.

A part of the problem is that if pet owners and even veterinarians aren't seeing mosquitoes where they live, and there aren't many reports of heartworm, dog and cat owners become careless. The problem "may be human nature, but pets pay the price," Jones says.

Stannard says he's been guilty himself, as his practice is in Livermore, CA, an arid area where mosquitoes aren't a big issue. Ten years ago, he began testing cats for heartworm disease. Much to his surprise, that first year 16 cats tested positive, and a total of 39 cats since 2004. The majority that tested positive were indoor cats.

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