Heartworm is a serious disease that can affect domestic pets, such as dogs and cats, in addition to wild animals, such as foxes, wolves and ferrets. Some cases have even been reported in humans, although instances are very rare. Heartworms are parasites that live in the heart and lungs of the affected animal. Infected mosquitoes bite and inject worm larvae at the site of the bite, causing the condition. The larvae then travel to the heart, where they mature and breed before moving and taking residence in the blood vessels surrounding the heart and lungs.
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Veterinarian Prescriptions
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Heartworm has been found in every state nationwide and in every country worldwide. It is a nasty disease that will starve your dog or cat of air and eventually cause heart failure. The best thing you can do as a pet owner is to take every precaution possible to prevent your pet from contracting heartworms. This can be done by putting it on one of the many heartworm preventatives on the market. However, for the safety of your pet, all heartworm preventatives in the United States must be prescribed by your veterinarian. Your dog must pass a proper physical before being prescribed a heartworm treatment program to ensure it can handle taking the medication without becoming ill.
Importing Nonprescription Medicines
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It is possible to buy nonprescription heartworm medication online and have it imported to the U.S. While there are no clear laws dictating whether or not this is permissible̵2;the import laws regarding human medications do not apply to drugs used to prevent canine heartworm̵2;there are some risks involved. First, you may not know what you are getting when you order medicine from a foreign country. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration neither regulates nor approves these imported drugs, and in some cases you may receive either expired medications, improper doses or improper medication entirely. Furthermore, a prescription protects your dog. If you dose your dog with nonprescription heartworm medication when it is already afflicted with the disease, the medicine could kill too many worms at once, resulting in clogged arteries. Your dog may be unable to get air into its lungs or blood to its heart and may die as a result of this home treatment. Finally, imported drugs may not make it through customs, depending on how they are packaged, from where they are sent and how they are sent. If you feel you must purchase nonprescription heartworm drugs from another country despite these risks, it is advisable to purchase from a Canadian online pharmacy, as Canada's drug regulations are more stringent than those of some other countries from which ship drugs online. However, most reputable foreign pharmacies will still require a prescription to be faxed before sending heartworm medication to the U.S.
Alternative U.S. Sources
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Many pet owners seek nonprescription medicines due to cost. There are other, possibly cheaper ways to get prescription medication other than through your vet̵7;s office. But as with anything you purchase from an online store, you should purchase only through a reputable site. These sites include 1-800-PETMEDS, PetCareRx, SitStay.com and Drs. Foster & Smith. There are many scam sites out there, so be careful when ordering prescriptions for your animals. Before ordering the medication online, you will need a prescription written by your vet, and the online store will require that you fax it a copy of the prescription before allowing you to purchase the preventative medication.
Perspective
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Although the less-costly options available might still seem expensive, they may pale in comparison to the cost of treating an animal that contracts heartworm. If the problem is not caught in time, treatment may not even be possible, so the cost may be your pet̵7;s life.
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