I need a recommendation on a vet badly.

[Mysticcobrakilla]

Probably has more to do with the fact that by the time you see symptoms, it's already really advanced. And little to do with the prevention meds killing the dog.

Ding ding ding!!

I've personally witnessed the "maintain" heart worm treatment work flawlessly on more dogs than I can count.

[Treasure Chest]

Great vet!

It really had nothing to do with the vet. The dog was 14, he drank a significant amount of antifreeze, from the time of ingestion until he was found was a good 12 hours, and the emergency vet treated him incorrectly for the amount of time from exposure.

He also spays/neuters for under $100, did my English bull dog's four lid eye surgery and removed a blood clot from her ear at the same time for $150.

He has very little overhead and makes the bulk of his money in the large animal hospital, so he keeps his pet prices low.

[bcoop]

I've got an old hillbilly uncle that won't put his dogs on heart worm prevention, then gives it to them when they get heart worms. It usually kills them in a month or three.

Probably has more to do with the fact that by the time you see symptoms, it's already really advanced. And little to do with the prevention meds killing the dog.

[Broncojohnny]

I got two 13 year old Boston Terriers that are about to keel over. I have already spent about $600 on them in the past two weeks. This week is going to be even better. They both got a little bit of heart disease and liver damage going on and one has two tumors in her foot that we are going to get cut out later this week (about $700). The other one is getting an ultrasound this week (about $400) so we can figure out exactly what medication she needs. I spent about $1700 two years ago having an ulcer on her eyeball repaired. These are going to be expensive dogs by the time they cash in their chips, hopefully a few more years from now.

[Geor!]

It was a slow relaxed walk , I never let him get to the point of breathing with his mouth open and we took a few breaks for him to water the flowers . With all the stuff I've read the heart guard treatment is a very common one to use on older / weakened dogs . It's less traumatic than the injections in the back muscle and slower to kill the worms . The meds are designed to kill them in the first stages of life and has little affect on the adult worms. With a heart worms life span of 9-12 months if the dog can be maintained and symptoms treated , it is possible for the dog to out live the worms and recover . I've compiled a list of vet phone numbers from y'all and family recommendations and the wife has a mission today . To talk to as many vets as possible and narrow down a second and third opinion . A decision on treatment will be made by Monday .
He thanks you

Good looking dog. Use this ordeal as a lesson though and get your dogs on a heartworm plan to prevent this from happening again.

[Geor!]

We use a vet in Gilmer. People actually fly show dogs in from as far as California to have our vet do certain surgeries on their dogs because he's reasonably priced, and very good.
For perspective, my ex's dog got into antifreeze last summer. The bill for 12 hours at the emergency clinic was $700. Scooby was transferred to Dr Spencer the next morning and he spent a week with treatment, monitoring, kidney function testing, and had to finally be put down, and his total bill was $400.

It's quite the drive from Cleburne, and with gas, you may not save much, but if you want to add him to your call list, I'll gladly give you his number.

Great vet!

[Reefer Rae]

It was a slow relaxed walk , I never let him get to the point of breathing with his mouth open and we took a few breaks for him to water the flowers . With all the stuff I've read the heart guard treatment is a very common one to use on older / weakened dogs . It's less traumatic than the injections in the back muscle and slower to kill the worms . The meds are designed to kill them in the first stages of life and has little affect on the adult worms. With a heart worms life span of 9-12 months if the dog can be maintained and symptoms treated , it is possible for the dog to out live the worms and recover . I've compiled a list of vet phone numbers from y'all and family recommendations and the wife has a mission today . To talk to as many vets as possible and narrow down a second and third opinion . A decision on treatment will be made by Monday .
He thanks you

[YALE]

Sources?

I've got an old hillbilly uncle that won't put his dogs on heart worm prevention, then gives it to them when they get heart worms. It usually kills them in a month or three.

[Frank]

Not that I am advising you to ignore it, but I had a dog that was diagnosed with heart worms. The treatment was very expensive and not something we could afford at the time. She lived another 13 years until I had to put her down about a month ago. I had to put her down because she was blind and very arthritic, not because of heartworms. She never fussed or showed any signs of pain in all those years and was very active until the last couple.

[mikec]

That opinion has killed a lot of dogs unnecessarily, unless I'm misunderstanding you.

Sources?

[Redd]

Be careful with the exercise. In a heartworm positive dog, raising their heart rate can increase the chances of pulmonary embolism and can cause sudden death. The risk is heightened once you start any type of treatment but still possible if a worm dislodges from the heart into the bloodstream. Also, adding any extra strain on a heart that is already working harder is not typically a good outcome.

Bassicly what happened to my boxer.... His heart was so damaged he went out side got excited bout dog next door started jumping and barking. Came in and fell over and had almost no pulse.

But as hard as it is, you can't refuse to put you dog down when they get to a point they aren't happy/comfortable/in pain/ etc etc

[stinginstang]

was this dog on heartworm preventative to begin with?

[YALE]

Man I must be getting a deal or vets are cheaper out here, it's only like $245 for heartworm treatment. My Rottie had them and he stayed at the vet's 3 days and then had to be kept indoors for a week or so, but he's good now. The best bet for an older dog is what a lot of the others have said, give him the heartworm prevention pills and let the old worms die off and keep new ones from coming in.

That opinion has killed a lot of dogs unnecessarily, unless I'm misunderstanding you.

[fastwhite99gt]

Man I must be getting a deal or vets are cheaper out here, it's only like $245 for heartworm treatment. My Rottie had them and he stayed at the vet's 3 days and then had to be kept indoors for a week or so, but he's good now. The best bet for an older dog is what a lot of the others have said, give him the heartworm prevention pills and let the old worms die off and keep new ones from coming in.

[Stephen]

I have 2 vets i suggest but you aren't close to either

1. Dr. Jan dewitt (best vet I've ever used!) (garland)

http://dallas.citysearch.com/profile/9522544/garland_tx/club_hill_animal_clinic.html

2. North Colony animal clinic: DR. Bowe (david)
http://www.yelp.com/biz/north-colony...nic-the-colony (maybe the second best as i cant compare as they are both equally incredibale!)

I have been sending my dogs, my parents dogs/cats etc to vets all over dfw for many years now ( I kind of had a pet adoption problem over my entire life)

Either one of these places will help you, give you correct advise, and not pull a sales pitch.

If you want my honest opinion, I cant give you a better vet out of the two.. dr. jan and dr. dabid bowe both actually really care about animals and will do whats in your's/theirs bets interest to help your pet