Pet Flea/Tick/Heartworm Champaign, IL

Heartworms, fleas, and ticks are three parasites that can infect animals and produce debilitating or even fatal sickness.
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What are these pests?

Heartworm is a spaghetti-like worm with a lengthy body. Larvae are injected into your pet’s bloodstream, where they naturally move to the heart and lungs to incubate and grow into their adult form. Adult worms can live for years inside these structures, with cats having a few and dogs having hundreds. Your pet may experience weariness, loss of appetite, breathing difficulties, and other symptoms before succumbing to the infiltration.

Ticks and fleas are also severe problems. Both creatures can induce dermatitis, causing your pet to scratch at the skin so hard that injuries occur, allowing germs to infect the skin. Fleas can transmit tapeworms, cat scratch disease, and even the bubonic plague, while ticks can cause Rocky Mountain spotted fever in your pet.

Preventing heartworm, flea, and tick infestations is always better to treating an existing infestation. Adult fleas and ticks can be removed and destroyed, but by that time, they may have already spread their fatal disease payload. In dogs, treating an advanced case of heartworm is a long, tough, and sometimes unsuccessful process; cats cannot safely get heartworm therapy, thus prevention is essential.

Preventative drugs, fortunately, do an excellent job of keeping heartworms, fleas, and ticks at away. Many of these drugs are designed to protect against all three parasites, and some, like Revolution, Advantage Multi, and Trifexis, also protect against others. To offer long-term, consistent protection, preventative medicines are usually given on a monthly basis.

The Importance of Flea and Tick Prevention

Every pet’s wellness routine should include parasite prevention. Flea and tick exposure without it could harm their health, happiness, and possibly your family’s health. As a result, we advise all patients to take parasite preventatives. Whether you have an outdoor-only cat or an indoor-only dog, your pet is susceptible to fleas, ticks, and other parasites, and prevention is vastly preferable than treatment.

So, why is flea and tick prevention so crucial for your pets? The following are some of the effects of parasite bites and infestations in pets:

  • Irritated, itchy skin
  • Scratching inflamed skin leaves open wounds.
  • Tapeworms are a type of tapeworm (internal parasites from swallowing fleas)
  • Too much parasite feeding causes anemia.
  • Lyme disease is transmitted by infected ticks.
  • Infected ticks transmit Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.
  • Infestations of fleas in your home Common Flea and Tick
  • Prevention Techniques

Flea and tick prevention should be used on all dogs and cats over the age of six weeks. Our veterinarian will assist you in determining which flea and tick preventatives are best for your pets, however, you have the following options:

Spot-On Liquids Oral Medications Sprays
Adult fleas are killed by some treatments, whereas fleas and ticks are killed by others. Some impede breeding and maturation (including the hatching of eggs), providing a more comprehensive level of protection for animals in need.