By Rebecca Settergren

I first heard of heartworm disease in dogs when I was living in Santa Cruz during the early seventies. The veterinarians in the area never mentioned it because it was not, at that time, endemic to the area.

Some friends of mine were sending their golden retriever off to a field trainer in the Sacramento Valley and were informed by him that their dog should be started on heartworm prevention before arriving at his training facility. Their local veterinarian had to special order the medication because there was no reason to keep it in stock. Then, the prevention was a daily pill and if forgotten for even one day, the dog had to be tested before restarting. I remember sitting around the kitchen table discussing the fact that a mosquito bite could be the cause of large worms living in a dog's heart.

It sounded like something out of a strange science fiction movie. Unfortunately, the knowledge did not make a big enough impact on me; I never thought of it again.

In February of 1977 I moved to Paradise with my two golden retrievers, three cats and a pregnant mare. My dogs were current on their vaccinations and had no health problems so there was no reason to see a veterinarian until May of that year when annual vaccinations were due, again. The vet told me about heartworm disease and that the dogs needed to be tested because they had been in this area for several months without being on prevention. Both dogs tested positive for the disease.

The cure was very expensive and hard on the dogs. They both had to be hospitalized for five days, then needed close confinement for several weeks and follow up meds that were huge purple pills. The dogs vomited and had purple diarrhea that permanently stained the concrete floor of their kennel. Now, it seems like the dark ages of veterinary medicine.

Heartworm disease is now so prevalent that prevention is necessary everywhere, even in the coastal cities where it had been unheard of previously. In fact, it has been reported in every state of the union.

The Paradise/Magalia area has one of the highest instances of heartworm disease in the entire state. It is spread by tree-stump mosquitoes, but is easily prevented by simply giving your dog a monthly, chewable, "heartworm pill." It is a prescription medication, dispensed by licensed veterinarians. Most low-cost vaccination clinics offer testing and the preventative. Heartworm disease is insidious: by the time a dog shows clinical symptoms the disease is well advanced.

There is a cure, but it is expensive and hard on the dog. There is no question that heartworm pills are necessary and they are completely safe for your dog. I have given heartworm pills to dogs in all stages of life: puppies starting at eight weeks of age, pregnant and lactating bitches as well as geriatric pets, with no ill affects. Don't be lulled into thinking prevention can be stopped during the winter months. It only takes one sunny day, even in winter, to produce swarms of hungry mosquitoes.

As it turns out, especially in this area, heartworm prevention is as necessary as food for your dog. That fact is making it difficult for me to get another dog. Looking back through the last ten years of my columns I have, on several occasions, said "if you can't afford heartworm prevention, vaccinations and having your dog spayed or neutered, you should not own a dog."

Now I find myself in that category. I can barely pay for those things for the three dogs I have. Adding another dog, as much as I want a new puppy, would be wrong. Heartworm pills for a 50 pound dog cost from $45 to $53 for a six-month supply, depending on where you get them. Because it is a prescription item, it means a veterinary office call and examination once a year is necessary before purchasing the prevention.

I can only imagine the drug companies and veterinary associations have very strong lobbies. Why else would the cost of heartworm prevention be so high and why must it be a prescription item? The drug, as your veterinarian will tell you, is very safe. It's a disease that is so common every state in the union has recorded cases and in the southeast part of the country the number of diagnosed cases reaches epidemic proportions, even higher than in our area. Can someone please give me a sound, logical reason why heartworm pills must be an expensive, prescription item?

Having said that, I'm sure I've angered every veterinarian I've ever worked for or counted as a friend. But the fact remains: It is a sad state of affairs that owning dogs is quickly becoming a luxury too many of us can no longer afford.