Heartworm infection is growing, and resistance to preventives is on the rise. What can pet owners do? - Dr. Marty Becker

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Heartworm infection is growing, and resistance to preventives is on the rise. What can pet owners do?

Monday, Aug 20th, 2018 | By Dr. Marty Becker

dog in grass

Yes, it’s true: Heartworm is developing resistance to common preventives, and the number of affected dogs and cats is spreading. We tackle this problem – and what to do about it – in this week’s Pet Connection:

Climate change, failure to give preventive, and the beginnings of resistance to preventive products are among the reasons why veterinarians are seeing more cases of heartworm disease in dogs — and cats. When the American Heartworm Society performed its triennial incidence survey last year, it found that while the highest incidence remains in the southern United States, no state is free of the harmful internal parasites, spread by the bite of an infected mosquito or, in the case of states such as Alaska, arriving by way of already-infected dogs brought from out of state.

Read more in Pet Connection, the weekly nationally syndicated pet feature I co-write with Kim Campbell Thornton and my daughter, trainer Mikkel Becker.