What Happens If a Dog Drinks Water With Mosquito Larvae in It?

Plentiful drinking water is essential for dogs, especially during warmer months when dehydration is more of a threat. It is during those months, however, that bowls of water might become infested with mosquito larvae. While the acid in your dog̵7;s stomach kills the mosquito larvae during digestion, these larvae can threaten your dog̵7;s health in other ways. Keep your dog healthy by being aware of the dangers these larvae pose and taking steps to prevent them from infesting her.

  1. Mosquitoes and Standing Water

    • Mosquitoes require pools of standing water in which to lay their eggs. These pools don't have to be large or deep to support the ̶0;rafts̶1; of mosquito eggs, making your dog̵7;s bowl as suitable a breeding ground as a puddle or a pond. Each female mosquito can lay up to 300 eggs at a time, which hatch about 48 hours after they were laid. Mosquito larvae remain in the water for the next week to 10 days, until developing into the pupal stage. While the eggs or the larvae are not harmful if consumed by your dog, they will eventually mature into fully grown mosquitoes if her water bowl is not refreshed.

    Mosquitoes as a Heartworm Vector

    • Mosquito larvae are not vectors of any disease. However, it takes a mere two weeks for mosquito eggs to hatch and for the young to mature into adult mosquitoes that can reproduce. Adult mosquitoes feed on the blood of domestic animals, including your dog. If one of the domestic dogs or cats that a mature mosquito feeds upon has not received heartworm treatment, it may carry heartworm larvae, called microfilariae, and infect your dog with it. The microfilariae must pass through the mosquito to develop the ability to grow into heartworms. Because many mosquito varieties tend to stay close to the source of water from which they hatched, preventing the development of larvae is an important component of heartworm prevention.

    Water Treatment and Mosquito Prevention

    • The simplest means by which to prevent mosquito development is to empty your dog̵7;s water dish and refill it every day. Circulating her water with a fountain-type watering device may reduce the possibility of mosquito larvae developing in the water. If your dog drinks from something that cannot be emptied regularly, such as a trough or a natural body of water, consider adding ̶0;mosquito fish,̶1; a variety of minnow that eats mosquito eggs and larvae, to the water. Finally, because bats eat large numbers of mosquitoes as part of their daily diet, attracting bats by putting up a bat house will reduce the number of mature, egg-laying adult mosquitoes.

    Determining if Your Dog has Heartworms

    • If you notice mosquito rafts or larvae in your dog̵7;s water or if she has a persistent cough, take her to a veterinarian to determine if she has heartworms. Your vet will draw some of your dog̵7;s blood to run either an antigen or an antibody test on it. If she tests positive for heartworms, she will have to undergo stressful treatment to kill the worms in its system. It is better to prevent mosquitoes and their larvae in your dog̵7;s environment before heartworms can become a factor.