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About National Heartworm Awareness Month

National Heartworm Awareness Month occurs in April of each year. It’s focus is on educating pet owners about the dangers and preventative measures they can take to insure their pets do not become victims of Heartworm.

Since the first diagnosis of canine heartworm disease over one hundred years ago, heartworm infection has been widely recognized throughout the world as one of the major health problems affecting pets today.

Heartworm infection is caused by worms ( Dirofilaria immitis) that may grow to be 14-inch-long adults. These adult worms live in the right side of the heart and the arteries of the lungs. Heartworm infection can cause serious damage to these arteries, eventually leading to heart failure, and in severe cases, damage to other organs such as the liver and kidneys. Dogs of any age and breed are susceptible to contracting heartworm disease.

While cats appear to be more resistant to heartworm infection than dogs, with fewer worms surviving into adulthood, they are still susceptible to infection and can also suffer from the effects of heartworm disease. However, they do not contribute significantly to spreading the infection.

Although the risk of heartworm infection varies from state-to-state, heartworm disease has been identified in all of the contiguous 48 states and Hawaii. It is most concentrated in the Southern United States.

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