Whether you trim your dog’s coat or not, be aware that dogs can get heat stroke from being out in the sun too long. This can be life threatening!!! As soon as you see (more…)

Heartworm disease is not a disease to mess with.  It can be fatal!!!  The worst part of it is its insidious onset.  By the time symptoms show up, the disease can be very risky to treat.

Heartworm disease is caused by a worm that is transmitted by mosquitoes.  The insect bites one dog with the disease, transmits larvae to another dog through a bite.  The larvae grows into an adult, which sits in the major artery from the heart to the lungs.  Numerous adults sitting in the pulmonary artery can eventually cause obstruction. Symptoms can be a minor cough, exercise intolerance, and collapse.

The treatment needs to be aggressive and can be risky.  Imagine the worms dying off and showering into the bloodstream, causing clots anywhere in the body, damaging potentially any organ’s function.

The key is prevention!!!  The disease is easy and inexpensive to prevent. Just give your dog 1 pill a month and he/she is essentially 100% guaranteed not to get the disease.

A current annual exam and heartworm test required to purchase a 6 month package of heartworm prevention.  If your pet is less than 6 months of age, however, and has been seen by us, you can just start him on prevention.  Just bring your puppy in for an accurate weight and we’ll get him/her started.

We also want to thank her staff who are fabulous!  Friendly, well-informed, and always accommodating - Pelusa would never go anywhere else.

Thank you,
G & G