Heartworm Treatment: Day 1

First, some background: Our border collie/lab mix, Montana, was diagnosed with heartworm last week. We went in for a heartworm test to close the 6 month "window" between her adoption and the present.

When we adopted Montana at the end of July, she tested negative for heartworm. Unfortunately, the test most commonly used detects only mature worms at 6 months and older. We started her on Heartguard as soon as we got her. The good news: it renders adult worms sterilize and kills worms less than 2-4 months old. The bad news: it doesn't kill adult worms.

We made the tough decision of treating her. At first, this seems like a no brainer, but it's a painful procedure, and with an antigen load as light as Montana's, the infestation may be harmless and clear up eventually with the aid of Heartguard (adult worms live about 5 years)... or it may not. We decided not to chance it.

Today, Montana went to the vet at about 8:30am. As usual, she was excited to see everyone there. I returned at 4:00pm to a slightly different dog. She was still wagging her tail, but she was most definitely hurting. That morning, she has been injected in the lower back muscle near her spine with Immiticide, a drug that kills adult heartworms. Not only did she undergo a painful injection, but she also had to have a section of her beautiful coat clipped down to make administering the drug easier.

She was able to get in and out of the car without any problems. We went right out into the backyard where she went to the bathroom without any problems. She also drank some water, ate a few biscuits and check in with the bunny. We headed upstairs, again without any problems, but Montana couldn't sit still once we got into the office. After about 20 minutes of moving around, she finally fell asleep on her back with one paw straight up in the air. She didn’t get up when Jarett got home (she usually greets him at the door, tail wagging), but she did raise her head when he came upstairs.

After dinner, we gave her a few more biscuits and some painkiller prescribed by the vet. She's been sleeping straight since then, but came upstairs with me again for bed time.

Tomorrow, we go back to the vet for shot #2. Once that's over, she'll need to be calm for 6 weeks until the worms clear out of her system. Is keeping a border collie calm for that length of time even possible? I guess we'll find out...