Many medicines are prescribed by veterinarians to prevent heartworms, which is a serious and possibly fatal disease caused by parasitic worms that affects dogs, cats, horses and other mammals. Prescribed medication involves regularly giving a pill to the animal. This is not a cure for heartworms but a regular prevention and can, in some animals, cause more harm then good. However, there are natural cures for your animal who has heartworms. By feeding them garlic in different forms, heartworms can be prevented from forming.
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Minced Garlic in Food
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By mincing a bulb of garlic and adding small bits of it to your animal's food over the course of a week, this will help prevent heartworms from forming. This minced garlic should be mixed well into the food, so that it is almost undetectable. That's because the look and scent of garlic will turn off some animals from eating, which only makes matters worse. Make sure it is well mixed and consider adding animal treats or other pet delicacies, which will encourage them to eat everything. Do this five times a week.
Garlic Pills
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Animals can be fed garlic tablets, which you can buy over the counter in any pharmacy or health food store. This will satisfy the necessary garlic intake your animal needs to prevent heartworms. While this isn't as pure as freshly minced garlic added to food, you won't have to mix up the food to disguise the scent of the garlic. Wrap a pill or two in a piece of meat or a hot dog and feed it to your animal a couple of times a week to keep the heartworms from forming. In the long run, this will be cheaper than actually buying heartworm pills and healthier for your animal.
Effects of Garlic
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The regular intake of garlic in animals and humans serves to increase the strength and protection of the heart and circulatory system. Garlic consumption is also said to help prevent ticks and fleas from nesting on the animal, as the smell and taste of their blood is less pleasant to insects. Cats should not be given supplements of garlic for extended periods of time, as it can become harmful to their immune systems. However, garlic intake in cats for short periods of time can be very helpful in preventing heartworms.
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