Active dogs, dogs heavily infected with heartworms, or those with other health problems often show pronounced clinical signs. Signs of heartworm disease may include a mild persistent cough, reluctance to exercise, fatigue after moderate activity, decreased appetite, and weight loss.

2024年1月21日 · Heartworm -- a worm that can take up residence in a dog’s heart, blood vessels, and lungs -- might seem like an unlikely threat to your pet. But it’s not uncommon.: It's been found in all...

2021年6月22日 · Heartworm in dogs is a potentially deadly parasite that is transmitted by mosquitos — learn more about the symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment of heartworm.

Any dog, whether it is an indoor or an outdoor pet, is capable of being infected; all it takes is a bite from a mosquito carrying the infective heartworm larvae. Most infections are diagnosed in medium- to large-sized dogs that are 3–8 years old.

Dirofilaria immitis, also known as heartworm or dog heartworm, is a parasitic roundworm that is a type of filarial worm, a small thread-like worm, and which causes dirofilariasis. It is spread from host to host through the bites of mosquitoes .

Heartworm (Dirofilaria immitis) is a fairly large worm - up to 14 inches long - that, in adulthood, lives in the heart and pulmonary arteries of an infected dog. Dogs become infected through mosquito bites as mosquitoes readily pick up heartworm larvae from the blood of an infected dog and carry the larvae to new dogs.

“Heartworm” describes a condition where parasites live and reproduce in the host’s heart. The heartworms themselves can be up to a foot long and are passed by mosquitoes, who carry the larvae from dog to dog. Where is heartworm most common? Mosquitoes thrive in hot, humid environments, and heartworm is rampant in the southern U.S.

Heartworm disease, or dirofilariasis, is a serious and potentially fatal disease. It is caused by a blood-borne parasite known as Dirofilaria immitis. Adult heartworms are found in the heart, pulmonary artery (one of the big blood vessels from the heart), and adjacent large blood vessels of infected dogs.

Heartworms are caused by the parasite Dirofilaria immitis. Immature heartworms, called microfilaria, are ingested by female mosquitoes when feeding on infected dogs. While the microfilaria are living inside the mosquitoes, they mature into larva.

Heartworm is a preventable, but serious and potentially fatal, parasite that primarily infects dogs, cats and ferrets. It can also infect a variety of wild animals, including wild canids (e.g., foxes, wolves, coyotes), wild felids (e.g. tigers, lions, pumas), raccoons, opossums, and pinnipeds (e.g., sea lions and seals), as well as others.