Is it morally reprehensible for vets to suggest using heartworm meds when...?

Question

The area you live in makes it impossible to even get heartworms? If more people knew that a mosquito first has to feed on an animal infected with heart worm then the temperature has to stay above 20C at ALL TIMES for 14 days for the heartworm microfilirae to reach the L3 larval stage and migrate into the mosquitos proboscis where it can infect another animal that the mosquito feeds on. If the temp drops in that time below 14C the process stops and has to start all over again and mosquitos only live for 30 days.. So in an area where the temperature never in recorded history has stayed above 20C for 14 days it is impossible for heartworm to be transmitted. If thats the case then why do vets tell ppl living in that area to give their dogs unecessary medication when its impossible to get heartworm because the environment is not conducive to the parasite reaching its infective stage? I live in Northern Canada by the way..

Check it out here...
http://cal.vet.upenn.edu/merial/hrtworm/hw_1a.htm
Where I live the vet still tells you to use heartworm meds even though its impossible to get them because the temperature in this area, why give your dog unecessary meds? is it just for the money? I mean it really and truly is impossible for them to get heartworms where I live.. first we only have 3-4 months of summer and average temp is 20C during the day and 5-10C at night.. sometimes we even get 0C or -1C
it NEVER stays above 20C for 14 days ever... not even in recorded history.

Yes I understand the whole travelling thing but the way the vets tell you here is that if you dont use it your dog will for sure get heartworm and if you dont give it to them you are a bad person etc.. I do not travel and I know the climate in my area, I have a thermometer outside my window.. when I learned these facts last summer I recorded the daily temp all summer and researched past temps, I found that it has never been warm enough for heartworm to reach the infective stage in my area. The vet did not inform me of these facts and just told me I HAD to give meds or my dogs would get heartworm.. to me that is morally wrong, they should inform you of ALL the facts and allow you to decide. If you travel to warmer areas ok use it if you dont then whats the point? you can monitor temp and if there is a freak heat wave ok use meds.

Answer 1

I appreciated the integrity of my former vet. There was a map on the wall, of where heartworm had been reported. He would point to the map, and tell clients that if traveling to any of those places, preventative needed to be started. Our own community had no outbreaks, as there was so much pesticide!!! in the area..Mosquitoes didn't stand a chance. (but the air was toxic for humans too) A good reason to be 'from' there..

Answer 2

I live in an area with about the same conditions, and heartworm has moved in here within the last 3 years. It was absolutely unknown here before, and heartworm preventative was never necessary. Obviously, this is a result of global warming, heartworm had never been known this far north before.

After knowing there were 3 local cases (not dogs imported) I put my gang on heartworm preventative last year. To take a chance that they could become infected, would be far more immoral, to me.

Answer 3

No, it's best to use heartworm meds before your pet gets it or the area becomes no longer heartworm free and then has to have expensive tests to first find out if it has heartworm. (That happened to us not long ago)

Heartworm can also be transmitted via other means, such as if they were to eat the meat from an animal (eg Mouse or bird) who was bitten by a mosquito carrying heartworm or they had a fight with an animal infected with heartworm as it is often in their blood as well as their heart and lungs.

Answer 4

You are right that the larva needs to mature inside the mosquito, and the mosquito needs to stay above a certain temperature. However, it doesn't necesarily means temp outside. If a mosquito harboring a larva gets indoors,she may stay around inside and survive long enough to pass on the larva to your dog regardless of temperature outdoors.

It is true that is unlikely in some states, although not impossible. Seems like you have done your research and you are ready to make an informed decision. I need to confess that I didn't give HW px to my dog during winter when I lived in the midwest. I still did the blood test every spring before restarting the preventative.

However, as I said previously, is not impossible. In the unlikely chance (depending on where you live) that your dog gets HW and your vet never told you about the disease and that there is a product out there to prevent it, is grounds for a lawsuit. No sane vet would want to run the risk. Plus many owners that stop during winter forget to restart in spring leaving their dog vulnerable, so is better to keep it all year long.

Cats are also at risk of HW. There have been like 10 reported cases only, so it is exceedingly rare.... but again, if we don't warn cat owners and they get case #11: lawsuit. We are not only to treat your pets, we are out there to educate you as well... and keep our licenses....

Also, some HW prev also help in preventing other things, like intestinal parasites and fleas. You should definitely test your dog at least once a year for HW regardless of your couse of action. Is much easier and better prognosis to treat a dog w a mild infection that is not showing clinical signs, than to treat an already sick dog.

Check the map in my link below to see where you are located related to HW prevalence. If you live in one of the states w high prevalence, maybe you should rethink twice about stopping the preventive. If you dont... then is ok to intermittently stop the prevention, as long as you are educated and well aware that sometimes stuff happens.....(in my opinion, dont let anyone else know)

Hope this helps you in seeing this from our POV, and that not all vets just want to get your money :-) Heck, some of them hang out in yahoo answers giving free advice simply to help owners....

Answer 5

2 things:

1. Most heartworm medicine fix more things than just heartworm. Your doctor may be suggesting the medicine to take care of a host of problems your dog could have. There are plenty of other nasties your dog could get besides heartworms, and they do not all require mosquitoes. Take Revolution, for example. It is used to kill heartworm, but it also eliminates fleas, ticks, ear mites, scabies, hookworms, and roundworms. Check and see what medicine he is suggesting and what else it does... unless Northern Canada is totally free of all insects and parasites. I have a feeling it isn't.

2. Why are you here complaining about your vet? You should have asked HIM about this! You'd then have your answer and wouldn't have to resort to bad-mouthing him in a public forum behind his back. Even if you are right, there are better ways to deal with the problem.

All that said, you may be right. I'd check the medicine and ask him about it. If you are not happy with the response, then it is time to change vets. Like anything else, all vets are not created equal. Good luck!

Answer 6

Considering the damage heartworm can do to a dog, it would not be a risk I would be prepared to take with any of my pets. If my vet suggested it I would ask why, and on that recommendation make my decision.

Answer 7

It's easier for them to just say "give them all heartworm medicine" than to figure out whether a few unusual areas don't need it. There are worse things than unnecessary medication, so I don't see how that's morally reprehensible exactly. But you sound like you know what you're talking about, so you can always do what you think is right for your own pets!

Answer 8

You have to kind of think of it from their perspective. If they do not recommend the heartworm preventatives and the dog does get heartworms somehow, they can be sued.

Answer 9

Did you know that 60% of dogs in United States will die from having heart worms? You must treat your dog. There are mosquito's everywhere. I too live in Canada and treat my dog, its important!

Answer 10

People do travel; your dog could easily get sick while traveling. Or also while at the groomer's, vet's, boarding place, etc. when it is warm.