Frequently Asked Questions

Heartworm disease is one of the most common parasitic infections in Texas dogs. The disease is transmitted by mosquitoes. After ingesting blood from an infected dog, the Microfilaria (“baby” heartworms) are transmitted to another dog or cat when bitten by the mosquito. Once the heartworms mature, they begin reproducing more microfilaria. The microfilaria must be ingested by a mosquito before they can become infectious. The mosquito must then inject the heartworm larvae into a susceptible pet

Adult heartworms develop 3-6 months after being bitten by an infected mosquito.

Heartworms impair blood circulation resulting in damage to the heart, lungs, liver and kidneys. Serious damage may occur even before outward clinical signs are observed.

Advanced signs include difficult breathing, coughing, tiring easily, listlessness, weight loss and fainting.

Heartworms occur in all breeds of dogs: both large and small, indoor and outdoor, long haired and short haired.

Diagnosis of Heartworms is by a blood test. Annual blood tests are recommended by our Doctors and the American Heartworm Society for all dogs, including those on preventative medications.

Treatment is very successful when the disease is detected early. The adult worms are killed with an injectable drug given in a series of 2 injections. A few days later, the worms begin to die, and are carried by way of the bloodstream to the lungs where they lodge in small blood vessels. They slowly decompose and are absorbed by the body over a period of several months. Other medications are required to kill the microfilaria at a later time.

Heartworms can be prevented. All dogs should be on heartworm preventative all year long. We recommend Heartgard monthly chewable tablets as the product to prevent heartworms and control most internal parasites. For clients who desire to combine heartworm and flea control, we recommend Revolution.

First of all, remember that a young puppy is like a “baby in diapers”. It takes time for the puppy to be able to control their eliminations. Therefore, we recommend using a dog crate to train your puppy. Your puppy should stay in the crate when not under direct supervision, for 6-8 weeks.

Dogs are clean animals – they do not want to “mess up” where they sleep. Dogs also like small confined areas, where all sides are protected except for the side they enter and can watch while lying down.

Crates should be large enough for the puppy to stand up and turn around. Do not get it too large, but allow a little “grooming room”. A small room in the house, is not recommend because it is still too large. If the puppy “messes up”, it must stay close to the elimination for a while to reinforce the need to hold it until it gets to go outside.

Once the puppy is in the crate, do not show it any attention. Any attention such as talking to it, sticking your fingers through the door, will allow the puppy to train you instead of you training the puppy. If attention is shown while in the crate, the puppy will quickly learn that all it has to do is bark, howl or whine to get more attention. Starting the first night, put the crate in a separate room and turn on the radio. The radio and soft music will often soothe the puppy and encourage sleep. After a week or so you will be amazed to see the puppy accepting it’s new “bed” willingly.

Immediately take the puppy outside after you remove it from the crate. If the puppy does not eliminate, place it back in the crate and try again in 5 minutes. Many puppies become very excited when release from the crate and forget what they are supposed to do. It does not take them long to learn the reward of “doing their business” is being able to stay out of the crate. Be sure to praise the puppy when it does eliminate. Take it to the same spot every time. Most puppies are fully capable of holding their urine for several hours and want it to be clean where they stay.

After eliminating, bring the puppy back into the house, feed it all it will eat in 15 minutes. Feed dry food, moistened with warm water. It is much better to add a commercial canned food that is nutritionally balanced than to add table scaps. Puppies should be fed 2-4 times daily until 4-6 months of age, and then they can be cut down to twice daily feeding.

If you are at work and unable to feed the puppy around noon, feed the puppy early in the morning, again at the time you get home and one hour before bedtime.

It’s next to impossible to housetrain a puppy that has food available at all times. The feeding must be restricted to definite feeding intervals to develop good bowel habits.

After the puppy has finished eating, take it outside 5-10 minutes later to have its bowel movements. Every puppy will have a bowel movement within 1 hour of eating. Some puppies take 5 minutes, some take 30 minutes and some take an hour. Once you have learned the appropriate time for your pet, you can wait and take it outside close to that time.

Make sure to feed your puppy early enough so that it has sufficient time to eliminate before being put back into the crate.

Water should be available to the puppy at all times, when the puppy is outside of the crate. Water and/or food should not be put inside the crate.

Always give the puppy an opportunity to go outside before putting it in the crate and always take the puppy outside immediately after taking it out of the crate.

When the puppy is left out of the crate, it is important that you keep an eye on the puppy and watch for signs of needing to eliminate, such as: circling, restlessness, sniffing, etc.

Remember, most housetraining accidents are the fault of the owner, not the puppy! J

Ear mites are tiny infectious organisms resembling microscopic ticks. The mite can just barely be seen as a small white dot with the naked eye, but it usually must be detected by examination of a sample of ear wax under a microscope. Infection usually produces a characteristic dry black ear discharge commonly said to resemble coffee grounds.

Ear mite infection is certainly contagious among cats and dogs. Typically, the victim is an outdoor cat. Humans have been reported to develop skin rashes rarely; in general, we may consider that a human pet owner is extremely unlikely to experience any symptoms when their pet is infected with ear mites.