Is there an alternative to Heartworm treatment from the Vet?

Question

I've had a Chihuahua for a week now. I took her to the Vet to have her checked out and she has Adult Heartworm. I cannot afford the $500 treatment. I'm so upset! Is there any other alternative way to get rid of the heartworm? Someone mentioned a drop you can give them orally that you buy from a feed store?? Please any advice!! I dont want her to die!

Answer 1

DO NOT USE THAT DROP MEDICATION!

Your dog's condition needs to be evaluated in order to determine if it is fit enough to undergo treatment.

Most likely that drop medication is avermectin type (ivermectin, doramectin, selamectin or any of the other derivatives). It is a good preventive medication against HW. It kills the larval forms, BUT NOT the adult worms. The problem with avermectins is that if there is massive infestation, sudden death of the larval forms may cause anaphylactic shock - You're not prepared to handle this.

Treatment of HW infected dog involves 3 stages:
1. Killing the larval forms, slowly, over a period of time to allow your dog to come into good condition.

2. Killing the adult forms. Only a very harsh parasiticide will do (arsenicals), avermectins just aren't enough. And the above answers are correct! Expect a lot of complications: embolism, anaphylactic shock, etc - You need a vet to handle these. It takes a month to get your dog cleared. Your pet should be STRICTLY CONFINED as strenous activities or excitement will exacerbate embolism problems.

3. Preventive program. Controlling HW should be a community effort. IT IS IMPORTANT TO REALIZE THAT STOPPING HW DOES NOT END WITH THE TREATMENT OF ONE POSITIVE DOG. It involves treating other possible carrier dogs in the neighborhood. It also involves controlling the vector mosquitoes. Mosquitoes can travel a radius of 2-3 miles. Your neighbors might complain, but it is in everyone's best interest to have a community effort. Control would involve regular fumigation 3 times spread 2 weeks apart in the breeding areas during risk periods; and destruction of breeding grounds.

Treatment and management of HW problems is an art. Treatment of $500 is reasonable cost.

Answer 2

I second/third whatever :) what most have said. I would call other vets and ask what they're cost for treatment is. Please don't do it yourself, do it under the direction of a vet, any vet. The posters who've stated the risks are not exaggerating. Depending on the severity of the problem the heartworm alone can kill the dog just as the treatment can.
Definately go back to wherever you got this dog. Its appalling that the dog left the seller/rescue/shelter with heartworm that was obviously not being treated nor were you even informed of the problem. If you don't want to give you your dog insist they pay for the treatment since it was their neglence that failed to have it diagnosed previously.

Answer 3

kanniece is right. I don't know why a couple of people disagreed with her. She had everything right, from the severity of treatment (It can kill an animal) to the amount of time needed for rest. (One month) We paid well over $500 when our dog had heartworms. To explain the embolism part better, when your dog undergoes heartworm treatment, the heartworms die off, and clump together, like cold spaghetti would. The only way for the heartworms to expel from her body is to be absorded through the lungs, and if they are killed off to quickly, they will cause an embolism.
Bite the bullet, and spend the $500.
Also, they no longer use the medication containing arsenic. There is a newer one that isn't quite as harsh. Please get her treated sooner than later, heartworms can cause her other organs to swell, and eventually fail.

Answer 4

You may want to ask other vets if their treatment is cheaper. Or if you find a vet you like and trust, ask if he or she has suggestions on how to afford treatment (if there are less expensive options or if you can set up a payment schedule).

You do not say where you got the Chihuahua, but you may want to go back to that seller for compensation. The seller did not give the dog a heartworm preventive, nor did the seller ensure the dog was heartworm negative before selling her--clearly the seller was negligent. I imagine the seller also claimed the dog was healthy, which was a lie.

I don't know if you can force the seller to pay for your Chihuahua's treatment, but it can't hurt to try. Good luck.

Answer 5

you could call around to local vets and get other prices. however, i think you're gonna end up spending near that ($500).

I think that is important for you to understand the complexity and danger in heart worm treatment. The bottom line is that heart worm disease is a significant disease. The treatment involves managing the heart, vascular and systemic disease present as well as eliminating the parasites. The goal of treatment is to eliminate the worms one way or another so the animal’s body can rebuild itself and return to the best possible post-infection health. This sounds simple but it can be very complicated depending upon the number of worms present, the dog’s reaction to their presence, the patient’s general state of health, handling the side effects from the medication and the effects on the patient of the dead worms within the circulatory system.
Treatment varies from dog to dog. Each animal’s personal condition is evaluated and the treatment protocol tailored to best effect a full recovery with the least side effects. The specific treatment protocol for your pet will be left up to your veterinarian since there is no way to predict how each animal will react to Heartworm treatment.

Treatment involves two basic areas:
1st) Patient evaluation and stabilizing for treatment procedure.
2nd) Elimination of all forms (adult, larvae, and microfilaria) of the Heartworm parasite.

Patient evaluation and stabilization involves X-rays, blood tests, heart evaluation, and any other tests indicated to completely evaluate the pet. The veterinarian evaluates the over-all health of the animal, then determines how to best proceed with treatment. Part of this evaluation is staging the severity of the Heartworm Disease in the dog. Some animals need to have certain conditions stabilized before Heartworm treatment can proceed. Those in third stage Heartworm disease may require deliberation to decide if it is best to try surgical removal of some worms through the jugular vein before any other steps of parasite elimination are considered.

Elimination of the Heartworm Parasite is a two-step process. The adult worms and the microfilaria are eliminated separately. No one medication kills both. The adults are treated first then a different treatment is used to kill the microfilaria and migrating larvae.

The most serious side effects usually occur with the treatment of the adult worms. As the worms die they lodge in the lung arteries and block even more blood vessels than before treatment. Besides the usual inflammation caused by the presence of the worms, the inflammation is amplified due to the decomposing worms within the blood vessels. This worm destruction releases foreign substances in to the dog’s circulation as the worms break down and are eliminated from the dog by the immune systems. A large amount of inflammation and swelling generally occurs during this period.

The prescription medications used to treat the adult Heartworms are called adulticides. The two adulticides used most commonly are derivatives of arsenic. It is not known exactly how these medications work to kill the worms.

So, based on all this information, I trust that you will see your vet to cure your dog of heartworms. This is not a task that a pet owner should undertake..... i think your pet is worth $500!

Answer 6

Hi Raquel!
Please look article: Intestinal Worms; http://www.askedweb.com/askedweb/Intestinal_Worms/

The parasitic worm is called a "heartworm" because the parasite, in the final reproductive stage of its life cycle, resides in the heart of its host where it can stay for many years and may kill its host through congestive failure of the heart. Heartworm infestation may be extremely serious for the infected host; infected dogs that go untreated can die and even treated dogs must go through a long period of uncomfortable treatment (sometimes requiring surgery) to kill the worms and remove them from the body.

Treatment is highly efficacious if the disease is diagnosed early in the disease process. Before the worms can be treated, however, the dog must be evaluated for good heart, liver, and kidney function to ensure the animal can survive the treatment. Any insufficiencies in these organs must be dealt with first, before treatment, as the eradication process can be taxing on organ function. Usually the adult worms are killed with an arsenic-based compound. The currently recommended compound, Melarsomine dihydrochloride, is marketed under the brand name Immiticide. It has a greater efficacy and fewer side effects than previous formulation (Thiacetarsamide sodium, sold as Caparsolate) which makes it a safer alternative for dogs with late-stage infestations.

After treatment, the dog must rest (restricted exercise) for several weeks so as to give its body sufficient time to absorb the dead worms without ill effect. Otherwise, when the dog is under exertion, dead worms may break loose and travel to the lungs, potentially causing respiratory failure and death.

Please, it is very serious problem, go to vet.
Jason Homan

Answer 7

A heartworm positive dog MUST be treated by a vet. If left untreated heartworms are fatal.
There is NO OTC treatment for heartworms.

The treatment MUST be done very percisely and carefully and it MUST be monitored closely by a vet.

****fleas do NOT cause heartworms.Heartworm is caused by a bite from a mosquito that is infected with heartworm larve*****

Answer 8

No there is not anything you can do but take your cat to the vet. You are looking for a cheaper way out but there is none. Fleas cause heartworm, Where did you get your chihuahua? Maybe the people you got her from will be able to help with the cost. If you can't treat her, Please put her out of her pain.

Answer 9

The only other option I am aware of is treating the heartworms with heart guard.....normally a preventative. This is monthly pill and will kill all of the baby heartworms. The normal life span of a HW is two years, so it will take at least that amount of time for your dog to test negative. Good luck........BTW, heartguard is the ONLY preventative you should use on a HW positive dog. Others could kill it.

Answer 10

500 dollars seems very high to me. Check at anoter vets office. I dont know of anything you can get at feed store to rid your dog of heart worms. A vet is your best hope of helping your little dog.

Just start to call the vets in your area and get their prices for treatment. Also ask if they have a payment plan so you can get your dog the treatment it needs.