Another issue requiring routine preventive care is the treatment and prevention of flea infestation and heart worm infection for both dogs and cats.
Fleas can be particularly annoying to
both dogs, cats and their owners. And there are a number of
misconceptions about flea control in both species that can be dangerous to pets and actually help keep a healthy population of fleas around to plague us.
Heart worm infection used to be a problem confined to certain geographic areas. When I was in practice in Montana it was rare indeed to see a dog or cat with heart worms. The critters we did diagnose invariably had recently immigrated from so called "heart worm endemic areas". Those areas were predominantly in the South or Midwest where healthy populations of mosquitoes contributed to the spread of the disease.
Well, thanks to our mobile society, and with a boost from
global warming, both the threat of year round mosquito problems and a steady supply of heart worm infected dogs has made this problem one that requires
year round vigilance in most parts of the country.
The incidence of heart worm disease is less severe in
cats than it is in dogs, but they can still be infected with serious consequences and prevention can be helpful.
A
PurinaCare® Plus Preventive Care policy has an annual benefit that can defray the cost of up to twelve months of prevention for both heart worms and fleas. Newer flea control products are safe and effective even for puppies and kittens.
It's just one more reason to insure at an early age. You can purchase a PurinaCare policy as early as 8 weeks of age and there is no waiting period for preventive care procedures.