If you own an animal in the United States it is likely that veterinary diagnostics companies will become an important part of your pet’s health at some point. From cats to dogs to horses, regular veterinary visit are a hugely crucial part of any animal’s health maintenance. And with millions of animals currently living in the United States, veterinarians have become more needed and more successful than ever before.
Owning an animal as a pet is a common practice no matter where you go in the United States. From horses (of which there are currently around two million) to dogs and cats, of which there are even more, with a total of nearly eighty million dogs and ninety six million cats, many people find pet ownership to a be a fulfilling part of life. But preventing against illness in you animals is part of responsible pet ownership, from year vet check ups to utilizing veterinary diagnostics companies through veterinary laboratory services.
Conducting a canine heartworm test is one such popular use of veterinary diagnostics companies. This antigen heartworm test is often widely needed for various common household pets, as heartworm is not a rare disease. However, it can be prevented thorugh food safety testing analysis and regular, sometimes yearly vaccinations. And this preventative treatment is suggested, and can be hugely cost saving, as the typical course of treatment for heartworm can cost upwards of one thousand dollars. But with one million dogs who test positive for heartworm every single year (and even more cats and horses on top of that number), it is important to conduct testing through veterinary diagnostics companies if heartworm is at all suspected.
Depending on the severity of heartworm, it can be hugely detrimental to the health of many different animals – and the way that heartworm affects animals will vary from animal to animal. Heartworm in dogs, for instance, is directly linked to how many worms are actually present in the heart. This number can sometimes be as high as thirty – or even higher. In cats, however, the number of worms found in the heart are typically far less, but cats are also more effected by a lower number of worms and even the presence of just two worms can be hugely hurtful to their overall health and wellness and can require immediate treatment. And horses react differently than both cats and dogs. Horses are referred to as inapparent carriers, which means that heartworms can be present in a horse’s heart will little negative effect.
Fortunately, however, steps towards heartworm prevention can be taken early in the typical household animal’s life. In young puppies, however, heartworm prevention treatment can be started even if they are younger than seven years old and the services of veterinary diagnostics companies have not been utilized. However, all animals should be tested on a yearly basis, even if heartworm is not directly suspected, just to make sure that heartworm is not present in the hearts of your animals.
Nobody wants their pet to get sick, and fortunately there are ways to prevent many different diseases that are likely to effect animals like dogs, cats, and horses. Heartworm prevention can be particularly important, as preventing heartworm can have a hugely detrimental effect on the health of animals the country over. Regularly vet appointments can also be hugely helpful and even instrumental in preventing disease, what with the regular vaccinations that many animals do require in order to stay healthy and happy.
