Sweet Gabe is doing wonderfully with all of his bite wounds and ear repair. He is still in the hospital but not because of his wounds. He is heartworm positive with clinical signs that have caused him to have a cough. We were going to start his treatment after he fully recovered but, unfortunately, that is not going to happen. His Cardiologist felt he needed to start his treatment while in the hospital to make sure he did well and not have any complications. The good news is that as of this morning he was doing great.
I find that so many people do not understand the risks involved in treating a dog with heartguard or any heartworm preventative without doing a heartworm test prior. If a dog has a heavy burden of worms and the medicine kills off a large quantity, the die-off can cause the dog to have a clot, and he can die. Please, do not treat a dog until you know what his heartworm status is. Too many dogs die each year because of this. It isn't the medicine's fault. It is the person that administered it without learning the dog's heartworm status and taking precautionary measures to keep him safe at all times. The American Heartworm Society has a very strict protocol for a reason. Too many dogs die each year when it is not followed correctly. Saving money could cost your dog his Life. Get the proper test done and then you know whether your dog is at risk for complications. I get notes all the time, and it breaks my heart because there is nothing that can be done after the dog has died. The saddest part is that I hear this from Rescues that lose dogs. Please, learn the facts and don't do a one size fits all application. We live in the South, and the chases of your dog having heartworms are pretty high if you have not been treating him. A smart Vet loves it when an informed Dog Owner walks in with facts. If your Vet does not agree with the American Heartworm Society protocol, then do your dog a favor and find another Vet. If your dog could read, I am sure he would agree with me.
https://heartwormsociety.org/images/pdf/2014-AHS-Canine-Guidelines.pdf
We know all the bad things that can happen and have experienced most of them. We are taking every precaution to make sure Gabe does not have any of those complications, and if he does, we are prepared. He body has already given us several warning signs to let us know he is a high-risk candidate. We are taking all of the necessary precautions to make sure he has the best possible outcome.
We have had so many dogs needing help recently that none of them are getting the money they need to pay off their bills. Please, Donate whatever you can so we do not go in the hole with these Medical Bills. Tomorrow will bring another ten animals that each tug at our heartstrings and needs major medical. We want to help them all and we can't if we are drowning in debt. Thanks for helping us with all of our pups and being our Guardian Angel and theirs. We are only as good as the Community that supports us.
