I have a 6 year old german shepard that was very active until what I noticed 2 days ago that he started to become less active and started to vomit. as I done alittle research I found the systems relate to heartworm. what can I do and what is the cost. I am unemployed. please help
Ask A Pet Pro
Helping pet owners get health help For their pets
Stop wasting time on “doing your own research” Take your dog to a veterinarian, have the diagnostics done and rule-out the fears that you are losing sleep over. A smaller financial investment to correct a minor problem now is much better than a larger investment in the future to correct a major problem.
Dr. Mark Logan, DVM
Baysea Veterinary Hospital
Cape May, NJ
Is your dog on heartworm prevention? You need to go back to vet school. Dog’s with bloody vomitus are a 100,000 times more likely to have something other than heartworm disease.
Phillip McHugh, DVM
Park Veterinary Hospital
Durham, NC
Hi, I am a certified petsitter and own a petsitting business and certified in pet cpr and first aid.
Worms are a serious thing and can lead to other health issues. Regardless if you are unemployed, you need to take him to a vet to get him on medication. You can tell the vet that you are unemployed and they may give you a discount or make payments on the bill. Also there is something out there called Care Creidt..this is an credit card that allows you to take care of your pet and yourself medically and you are able to make payments which are reasonable.
Thanks Brenda J.
He really needs a basic exam, possible x-rays and a blood screen to check basic organ function (liver, kidneys, etc.). There are MANY possibilities and Heartworm is only one of them. He could have a foreign body, stomach bloat, a tumor, kidney disease, liver disease, pancreatitis, parasites, an infection, etc. The list of possibilities is long. He needs to be checked out by a vet ASAP with a physical exam for starters, and they will tell you what they think might be going on, and they will give you options in terms of what tests should be run. Good luck!
Dr. Kirsten Bock, DVM
Animal Clinic of Benicia
Benicia, CA
I would recommend taking your pet in for a checkup. You should be able to get an examination and a heartworm test for less than $80 and then you will have some answers.
Dr. Mark Helvie
Dahlonega Veterinary Hospital Dahlongega, Georgia
The dog needs to be tested for heartworm disease! You can’t tell he has heartworms from vague symptoms like you describe.
BW DVM
Hollywood, FL