Symptoms of Heartworm Disease in Dogs

Heartworms derive their names from the behavior and role of the parasites; when they become adults, they would live right in the heart of the dog. Heartworm disease starts with a single mosquito bite. This bite already carries the infected larvae inside the dog’s body.

At first, these larvae would hatch in the bloodstream until such time that they become worms and start searching for the heart where they will live as adults. Their residence in the heart of the dog can lead to complications in the dog’s system. The growing larvae and worms in the bloodstream would block the pumping of the blood. The heart would be enlarged when it pumps even harder. The larger the heart becomes, the harder the pumping would be. The lungs would also get damaged.

Heartworm disease was discovered in 1856 in the US. During that time, scientists and doctors found out that these worms live in the heart and the major blood vessels.

These damages inside would be shown in the signs that usually manifest in the dogs after five to six months.

These signs would likely involve:

1. Pulmonary damages to the arteries. When the grown worms leave the bloodstream, they would travel their way down into the heart. There, they would cause damage to the arteries. Since these worms are foreign bodies, their presence would mark an inflammation of the area where they settle themselves into. This will further lead to other diseases such as blood clotting and aneurysms.

These conditions would reduce the space in the bloodstream that is supposed to transport oxygen and blood. If these substances do not reach the lungs, the result would be fatigue, nosebleed, endless coughing, and pulmonary Eosinophilic Granulomatosis.

2. Heart failure. The worms that settle in the heart, particularly the arteries, would clog up the heart. The heart will encounter difficulties in pumping blood. There would be lesser blood flow which is the main cause of hypertension. In other cases, the heart would have contractions that will result to arrhythmia which can kill the dog.

3. Inflammation. Due to the presence of these foreign bodies, the normal reaction of the body would be inflammation. Antibodies would develop which will trigger chronic inflammation that can cause more pain.

4. Other signs. Unusual cases of Heartworms are those times when they reside in the eye, leg, or brain. The results would be seizures, blindness, and problems in moving the body of the dog.