Heartworm Medicine: Protective Medication to Avert Heartworm - By: Trevor Price

Heartworm medicine is critical to preventing your animal from contracting heartworm, particularly in areas rife with mosquitoes, the insects responsible for carrying the disease. To find out more about heartworm prevention drugs, including how to administer them and possible side effects, read on.

Brands of Heartworm Medications

In the U.S., the drugs approved for heartworm prevention are moxidectin (sold under the brand ProHeart), ivermectin (a popular drug usually sold as Heartgard) and milbemycin (also known as Sentinel or Interceptor). These drugs are usually sold as pills and are available at most veterinarian offices.

In countries like Australia, Canada, Japan and Korea, pet owners can buy ProHeart 6 or ProHeart 12 - these are injections that are administered by a veterinarian and will last for 6 to 12 months. The injectable form of moxidectin is not approved for use in the U.S.

For cats, heartworm prevention medicine is available as milbemycin (also sold as Interceptor for cats), ivermectin (sold as Heartgard for felines) and selamectin (sold as Revolution for Cats), which is a topical cream.

Effectiveness of Heartworm Medicine

If it's administered properly and on a regular schedule, heartworm prevention drugs are over 99% effective in protecting dogs and cats from heartworm infections.

Usually, if a heartworm medication fails, it is because of pet owner error - the person did not administer the heartworm pills on schedule or did so incorrectly. That said, the monthly doses are fairly effective, so if a month is missed, most animals are still protected as long as the next two month's doses are administered on time.

How to Use Heartworm Medication

Monthly drugs for heartworm prevention should be given to your pet beginning a month before the start of your local mosquito season. The treatment should then continue for a month after the end of typical mosquito activity.

In tropical and sub-tropical climates with year-round mosquito activity, most veterinarians recommend that animals take heartworm prevention drugs throughout the entire year. Some also recommend it for colder regions, but it's not typically necessary unless you plan to travel with your pet.

Most heartworm drugs are available as chewable tablets. For pets that don't like taking pills, veterinarians often recommend hiding the pills in their food.

Side Effects of Heartworm Drugs

Side effects for heartworm prevention medications are rare, but this is partly because it's difficult to spot those that aren't blatant. For example, a dog can't let you or your veterinarian know that his tummy is sore or he's slightly nauseous.

Despite a lack of apparent side effects, overdoses of heartworm medicine can be very dangerous and should be treated immediately. Signs of overdose include tremors, vomiting, diarrhea and lack of coordination.

About the Author

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