Help, Possible Heartworm

[Melina]

Yeah, I'm just worried about him, he's not showing any symptoms really, no coughing or anything, so he may not be completely infested if he does have it, it may not be that bad, again, I'll know Monday...

The first test that they did came back with a weak line in the positive area, so they did another one. The second test they did came back negative at first, then I was on my way out the door thinking, "Okay, I'm going to have my regular Vet test him, not just Petco's Vet clinic, just to make sure", and the second test started to show a weak positive line as well, so they confirmed what I was thinking and said to take him to my usual Vet and have him tested to ensure that he's not heartworm positive.

As I've said, I've only had Koda a short time, but I'm so attached to this dog, and anything he needs treatment wise, for ANYTHING, is so worth it, he's such a good boy. He follows me around the house, always wants to be by my side, he's so gentle, and my other dog loves him. He waits for me outside the bathroom door until I'm done, if I'm using it, haha, then follows me to whatever room I go to...he's funny

He's such a beautiful boy, I have a good Vet that I trust, I'm sure she'll tell me what's up on Monday...

[Melina]

Spiritsmam - Do you think you can find out what it's called when a dog has a protein in their blood that interferes with the snap test? I tried googling it and I couldn't find anything on it, I'd like to bring it up to my Vet on Monday...

[LJsMom]

Here's another website to check out: American Heartworm Society | Canine Guidelines

[Melina]

Thank you for all the information, it really is appreciated, I'll let you all know how it goes tomorrow...

This is a question that just occurred to me: Does having heartworm affect a dogs prey drive? I don't mean their ability to play and run around, I know it affects that, I mean, does it affect their want to go chase a ball or a toy in general? One thing I noticed about Koda is that he doesn't seem to be toy oriented. He's more than content to chase a dog around the dog park and sniff its butt, but he doesn't really want to play fetch, he doesn't seem to have a high prey drive. Could that be a product of heartworm infestation, the lethargy, etc? As I said, he'll run after a dog, but not a ball or a toy. I've just know Shepherds to be total toy fanatics, from what I've seen, I've never owned one until him, are there one's like Koda that just have a low prey drive, or could it possibly be the heartworm?

[GSDSunshine]

I have a Koda! When he was taken in by his foster he had NO IDEA what a toy was, much less how to play with one. i don't know if the heart worms would affect it for your guy, but my Koda just had to learn how to play and find out that playing with me with toys was FUN!

My guy still is pretty picky about what toys he likes. He has become quite attached to his green good cuz (we have recently graduated to him being able to search it out and he will bring it over to play...when we first got it for him, he would only hold it by the feet because when it sweaked, it scared him and he would drop it), and a skineez squirrel, and he has become quite good at catching a tennis ball, but we have a bin full of dog toys but most are never touched.

So to answer your question, yes, some german shepherds can be like that, but some can learn to become more playful, if you give them the chance.

[Melina]

Sunshine - Now that I think about it, Riley, my Sheltie mix didn't know what a toy was when I first adopted her either, so maybe it's a combination of both not knowing what toys are and having issues with heartworm (If he has it, I'll know later today, the appointment is at 3:40). I bought Riley all these toys when I first got her home and she just looked at me like, "Mom, what do I do with these?", haha. It took her a few weeks to really go run after her rope toys and balls, she didn't even know what a leash was at first! Now whenever I get the leash out she gets so excited, it's wonderful.

If I hand Koda a tennis ball or a plush toy he'll pick it up in his mouth, but he'll usually walk about 10 feet and put it down, so as I said, it could be that he doesn't know what to do with it, in combination with the fact that he's lethargic from possible heartworm, I don't know. Either way, if he does have heartworm, it's probably a good thing that he doesn't have much of a prey drive right now because I won't have to worry about too much movement during treatment, he's usually very mellow around the house. I've only gotten him to play fetch in the back yard once so far.

I'm so nervous about what we find out at the Vet this afternoon. When I woke up this morning, Koda came over to the side of the bed and put his front paws up on the side, then layed his head next to mine as if to say, "Mom, I'm gonna be alright". He's never woken me up like that, it was really weird, but comforting. He's such a sweet boy, whoever let him go is missing a darn good dog.

[Melina]

Well, I just got back from the Vet, they're sending out the bloodwork, so I get to bite my nails for another day. Aside from that, she said that Koda looks to be in good health. She pegged him for between 1 and 2 years of age (whereas Vetco said between 2 and 3, so that's cool that he might be younger). The Vet said that he also doesn't really need to put on weight, which I thought he did, but I'm not an expert. She said he could put on 5 pounds and it wouldn't hurt him, but he doesn't need to, she said he's a good, lean weight. He did, however, put on 2 pounds since the last time he was there, which is odd, haha. Though it could be muscle since he's been running around the dog park so much. He's up to 67 pounds. Either way, I'll find out the results from the heartworm test tomorrow, until then, i'll anxiously be sitting around...

[TxRider]

If your dog has such a light case it is barely registering on the test he probably qualifies for just starting him on the ivermectin preventive and letting it kill them off over the next year and a half.

Such a light case likely does not affect him at all, no symptoms.

I believe the statistics on the 3 shot immiticide treatment is about a 5 out of 100 kill rate for dogs who get the treatment.

A heartworm is a 6-12" worm that lives in the main artery and heart, your boy likely only has a couple of them, not dozens like more severe cases.

My latest rescue was positive, and not so light a case. She came through the treatment with flying colors over a month ago.

They classify the cases into four levels I believe, the lightest of which can simply use the ivermectin preventive for a slow kill with less risk, but a small risk of embolism over the next year if exercised hard.

Worse cases like my dog are at a much higher risk of embolism from the dead worms as they break up in the blood stream, but only for a month after treatment.

[Melina]

Rider - Hmm, even if he only has a light case, wouldn't it be better to do the quick kill method and then only worry about and embolism for a shorter period of time? I'd rather be able to have him in confinement for 2-3 months then be able to take him back to the dog park, you know? I'd rather not be horrified that my dog is going to keel over at any second for the next year. What would the pros and cons be of the slow kill vs. the quick kill? If we did the slow kill, it would be less invasive, no? But he could be at risk for an embolism over the course of the next year? Whereas with the quick kill, it would be rougher on his body, but the time length during which the chance an embolism could occur would be shorter?

[Melina]

I just looked it up and this is what I found:

"Heartgard (slow kill)

The "slow kill" method, which is a newer approach, is the one prefered by us for treatment of dogs who are in Stage 1 of the infection. It consists of giving the dog Heartgard on a monthly basis. This heartworm preventative medication has some effect against the adult worms and should gradually eliminate them over a period of one to two years; without treatment, the worms can live up to five years. The earlier the treatment is started after infection, the more quickly it will work to eliminate the adult worms. Note that only Heartgard (ivermectin) should be used, as Revolution (selamectin) affects far fewer adult worms, and Interceptor (milbemycin oxime) almost none at all.
Although this method is gentler than the use of Immiticide, the danger from the dying worms is still present, and for a much longer period. A recent Italian study showed that pet dogs (as opposed to the caged laboratory dogs this method had been tested on before) did get pulmonary emboli and some of the dogs died of it. The more active the dog, the higher the risk"

Edit:
I found this website too, how odd is this, another GSD Koda with heartworm:
http://www.kodasheartwormtreatment.c...-for-dogs.html

*One more edit quote:

"Definitely the "long slow kill" does work, but with many risks. There was an Italian study presented at the American Heartworm Society Symposium this year (2004) that followed actual client owned dogs treated with this approach, and the incidence of pulmonary changes and other problems was very high - higher than with the standard "fast kill" protocol.

If you use the "slow kill" method, which takes around 18 months to three years to kill the worms, you have to keep the dog quiet for the whole time. It might be safer than the immiticide (it's basically just giving the regular preventative dose of Heartgard once each month - not a higher dose) from the point of view of drug reactions, but the risk of emboli is the same, or even worse, since you're stretching it out over a much longer time."