Cat owners need to beware of deadly disease

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Updated: October 28, 2011 11:14AM

Losing a pet to a preventable disease is heartbreaking.

Take Motormouth the cat. At 10, he was a healthy, active cat who spent some time on his owners’ outdoor deck. They brought the cat in to Vernon Hills Animal Hospital in Mundelein recently when Motormouth became lethargic, was breathing heavily and was panting.

Dr. Stephen Barten at the animal hospital knew something was seriously wrong when he examined Motormouth. After X-rays were taken and blood was sent to the lab, he diagnosed feline heartworm disease.

Unlike cat owners, dog owners are well aware of the risk of heartworm disease in their pets. Heartworm disease in cats usually isn’t even on the cat owner’s radar. But it should be. Although feline infection is not as common as the canine variety, the feline version is a much more widespread than previously believed, Dr. Barten said.

Heartworm medication, taken year round, can prevent the onset of the disease, added Dr. Barten. The medicine is inexpensive, sold over-the-counter, and is given monthly to your pet. Chewable tablets and a topical application, which also prevents fleas, are available.

Outdoor cats are at a greater risk of being infected with heartworms, since mosquitoes carry the disease. However, a relatively high percentage of cats considered by their owners to be indoor cats become infected because the cats actually spend time outdoors on the deck, on the balcony, or in the yard, said Dr. Molly McCullough at the animal hospital. The insects also make their way indoors through open doors or torn screens.

Heartworm is fairly easy to diagnose in dogs, but is more difficult to detect in cats. There is no blood test which is 100 percent accurate, so a combination of blood testing, chest X-rays and in some cases, echocardiography, are used to make the diagnosis, added Dr. McCullough.

There are no specific symptoms in feline heartworm. The signs of infection are more immune-related than heart failure related (which is what you see in dogs). Cats develop more of a lung disease, characterized by respiratory distress and chronic coughing and vomiting. Sudden death may occur.

Heartworm in cats is more insidious than it is in dogs. Worms found in dogs infected with heartworm disease can grow up to 14 inches in length, and can expect to live about 5 years. Due to the cat’s strong immune system, heartworms in cats will only live 2 to 3 years, but can do serious damage during their short life.

Cats with severe cases of heartworm disease may require supportive therapy, such as fluids, oxygen, cage confinement, bronchodilators to help them breathe more easily, cardiovascular drugs, antibiotics, and good nursing care. In the right patient, a surgical specialist may be able to extract the heartworms manually.

Unfortunately, Motormouth had a severe case, and the best his owners could do was have the excess fluid in his chest drained and keep him comfortable.

For more information on feline heartworm, contact Vernon Hills Animal Hospital at 847-367-4070, or visit http://www.vhah.com/. To see Motormouth’s X-rays, visit http://www.vhah.com/site/view/195314_HeartwormDiseaseinaCat.pml.

Also visit Vernon Hills Animal Hospital on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Vernon-Hills-Animal-Hospital/106225214832.

Dr. Steve Barten and Dr. Molly McCullough contributed this article.