Canine Heartworm

Question
Hi,
My dog is in pretty good health but has recently been diagnosed with Heartworm. I was told he should receive very expensive heartworm medication that I cannot afford. Is there anything, or any ideas of what I could do instead?
Any information will be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Jen.

Answer
There are two basic methods of treating heartworm, the "fast kill" method and "slow kill."  My guess is that your vet is recommending the fast kill method, which gets rid of the worms more quickly, in a course of treatment over a couple of months.  This is the more expensive treatment.

The slow kill method uses Heartgard (ivermectin), which is used also to prevent parasites and is a less expensive medication.  You give the medicine to your dog yourself, and don't have to return to the vet for a series of difficult injections, so that is another reason for the treatment to be less expensive.

A homeopathic medication is Paratox, which you can get from  Dr.Wessner at 352-245-2025  Summerfield FL.  I believe it costs $18 a bottle; you will probably need two bottles.  I cannot tell you whether it is as effective as Heartgard.

If it were my dog, I think I would go with conventional treatment.  This depends on how seriously your dog is infested - I would be more in favor of conventional treatment the more seriously your dog's condition is.

Be sure to feed your dog as well as you possibly can during the treatment.  The body will be under a lot of stress to excrete the dead worms, and you want him to be as strong as possible.  The most serious risk is from blood clots caused by the worms.  Supplement with all the B vitamins, especially niacin and pyridoxine, and the minerals chromium, selenium, and chelated zinc.  (Give the human dose, scaled down to your dog's weight.)

If you adopted your dog from a shelter or rescue group, they may have a plan to help you pay for the treatment, or may be able to refer you to a veterinarian who will give you a discount.

During treatment, by the way, do not let your dog get a lot of exercise, which is more likely to lead to blood clots.

I hope he does well - Check back with me if any of this is not clear.

Susan