DOG FILARIASIS

Filariasis is a serious disease caused by mosquito bites and infections caused by parasites infesting the heart and lungs.
Heartworm has an elongated shape like somen noodles. The adult body length is ♂：17cm,♀：28cm（each average)【see the figure on the right】

It is asymptomatic in the early to middle stages of infection. symptoms are coughing・rough breathing・loss of appetite・unwillingness to go for a walk・poor hairiness・fainting while falling after exercise・reddish brown pee・bloating are confirmed in the middle to late stages. Then the heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, etc. become dysfunctional and the host dies after suffering.

Once infected, treatment is very difficult. Treaments include heart surgery and the administration of drugs with strong side effects. However, once it develops, even if it can be treated, complications may remain, and it is a very difficult disease to cure completely.

The main preventive method is to take the medicine once a month. a blood test should be done before giving the drug to make sure you are not infected with heatworrm.
（The test is conducted every year and is stipulated by the Pharmaceutical Affairs Law to check for infection every year.）
The reason why the test is necessary is that if it is infected by any means, it may die by taking preventive drugs. In order to avoid an accident in the first place, the blood test before medication should be done pproperly.

If you can confirm that you are not infected, you can take oral medicine once a month or drop the medicine on your neck. The most popular type is the oral medicine type, but there are various types of medicines such as tablets・powders・and chewables, so please choose the medicine that is easy to do and that suits your pet.
If you check for infection by blood test before the mosquitoes start to appear （mid March〜April）and the medicine is given properly from around May to December, you can prevent the disease no matter how much you are bitten by the mosquitoes.

※The duration of administration of preventive drugs varies depending on the region. The above is the average period and time for the kanto region.