Adobe Pet Hospital, Livermore, CA - Where Pets Are Family!

Parasite, Heartworm, Flea Prevention

Pets, Parasites and People
Failing to give regular monthly de-worming/heartworm medications to your pet can expose you and your family to serious parasitic diseases. People get infected with animal parasites by accidentally swallowing microscopic eggs spread through pet feces and direct penetration of larvae into the body from contaminated soil. The eggs hatch into larvae (microscopic “baby” worms) that migrate rapidly throughout our body potentially causing severe, allergic reactions in organs and tissues. Larvae never develop into intestinal worms in humans like they do in our pets.

To download an article of a mother’s first hand experience with this serious disease click here.

The diseases humans acquire are named after the part of our body where the larvae migrate;
Ocular Larval Migrans (OLM) – migrating larvae causing vision loss and blindness in humans
Neural Larval Migrans (NLM) – migrating larvae causing encephalitis
Visceral Larval Migrans (VLM) – migrating larvae in the internal organs causing potentially fatal disease
Cutaneous Larval Migrans (CLM) – larvae migrating under the skin

The CDC estimates 15 - 17% of the people in the US test positive, and have had exposure to dog or cat roundworms. According to Dr. Peter Schantz, Director of the CDC’s Division of Parasitic Diseases:

“The risk is especially great for vulnerable populations, including infants, children and individuals whose immunity is compromised by a pre-existing disease and prolonged medical treatment. Unfortunately, many pet owners are not aware of the health risks-human and animal-posed by intestinal parasites, and are therefore not motivated to take even basic preventative measures”

People who are at greater risk;

  • Children
  • Diabetics and anyone “Immune Compromised”
  • Elderly
  • Cancer patients – chemotherapy
  • Hypothyroid
  • Pregnant
  • Transplant patients

Roundworms from dogs and cats are a leading cause of vision loss in children in the US today. One study estimated that one out of 1000 people living in Alabama have lesions in their eyes from animal parasites.

Monthly deworming for all dogs and cats recommended by the following;
CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), www.cdc.gov
CAPC (Companion Animal Parasite Council) www.capcvet.org
AAHA (American Animal Hospital Association)
AHS (American Heartworm Society) www.heartwormsociety.org
AAVP (American Association of Veterinary Parasitologists) www.aavp.org

The good news is that the monthly heartworm medications prescribed at the Adobe Pet Hospital also de-worm your pet for contagious intestinal parasites.

Once-a-month chewable Sentinel® for dogs and Interceptor® or topical Revolution® for cats will de-worm your pet for roundworms, hookworms and whipworms (dogs) every month and also protect your pets from mosquito transmitted heartworm disease.

Twice yearly Intestinal Parasite Screening by centrifugation on your pets stool, as recommended by the CDC, rules out “Protozoan” parasites (single cell microscopic parasites - Giardia, Coccidia and Cryptosporidium) and further protects your family.

Call our office at (925) 449-4228 to schedule any unprotected pet for the appropriate blood testing and fecal testing and start your pet on Interceptor or Revolution for cats or Sentinel for dogs.

Heartworm Disease

What is heartworm disease?
Heartworm disease is one of the major health problems of dogs in the US and throughout the temperate and tropical areas of the world. It is now being found in cats in ever increasing numbers. The disease develops when a pet becomes infected with parasites called Dirofilaria immitis transmitted through the bite of an infected mosquito. Dogs may be infected by a few or up to several hundred heartworms, often growing to ten or twelve inches. Cats are similarly infected although usually by only a few worms. Heartworm infection often leads to severe lung disease and heart failure and can damage other organs in the body as well.

Feline Heartworm Disease - Indoor Cats Get Heartworms Too!

At the Adobe Pet Hospital we are seeing 15 times as many cases of heartworm exposure in cats compared to dogs and a significant number have been strictly indoor pets!

  • There is NO cure for Feline Heartworm Disease
  • Interceptor® once-a month chewable tablets or once-a-monthly topically applied Feline Revolution® prevent this potentially fatal disease in cats

Preventing canine heartworm disease is simple and safe

  • Once-a-month chewable Sentinel ®
    • Prevents heartworm infection
    • De-worms you dog for Intestinal parasites (Roundworms, Hookworms and Whipworms)
    • Prevents fleas from breeding and stops their life cycle

Flea Prevention
At the Adobe Pet Hospital we don’t treat fleas – we prevent them! We have selected only the most effective and safest products available. Flea prevention is tailored to your pet’s specific exposure and lifestyle. This can be accomplished without the use of messy topical products in most cases. This is very important in light of the introduction of many new topical products appearing on TV ads, some of which are highly toxic and even have “Black Box” warnings on their label mandated by the FDA –the same type of warning that is on cigarettes! Gone too are the days of “bombs,” “foggers,” and yard sprays!

For dogs we recommend Sentinel, a simple once-- a month chewable pill that not only prevents fleas but de-worms your dog for roundworms, hookworms (contagious to people) and whipworms and prevents heartworm disease as well! Sentinel®, combined with an occasional Capstar® tablet (Capstar® kills any flea within 20 minutes) is generally all that is needed to keep you pet and home flea free and with NO toxicity or topical mess.

For cats, we recommend a Program® flea injection. A Program® injection lasts 6 months, prevents fleas from reproducing and effectively eliminates the flea population in the environment – all with ZERO toxicity for you and your cat! The active ingredient in Program®, Lufenuron, prevents the flea larvae from forming a viable cocoon and ends their life cycle. Additionally, Lufenuron prevents the flea eggs from hatching in the first place. This One-Two punch is the most effective way on the market today to rid the environment of pesky fleas. As an added bonus, Lufenuron is 100% non-toxic to mammals – it only affects fleas by inhibiting their chitin synthesis (chitin is what makes up the flea's exoskeleton)

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  • Failing to give regular monthly de-worming/heartworm medications to your pet can expose you and your family to serious parasitic diseases.
  • The CDC estimates 15 - 17% of the people in the US test positive, and have had exposure to dog or cat roundworms.
  • Roundworms from dogs and cats are a leading cause of vision loss in children in the US today.
  • Once-a-month chewable Sentinel® for dogs and Interceptor® or topical Revolution® for cats will de-worm your pet for roundworms, hookworms and whipworms (dogs) every month and also protect your pets from mosquito transmitted heartworm disease.
  • Twice yearly Intestinal Parasite Screening by centrifugation on your pets stool, as recommended by the CDC, rules out "Protozoan" parasites (single cell microscopic parasites – Giardia, Coccidia and Cryptosporidium) and further protects your family.