American Heartworm Society seeks clinic data for 2019 survey

The American Heartworm Society is asking clinics to fill out the 2019 Heartworm Incidence Survey as the organization prepares to compile its 2019 heartworm map.

Clinic staff can fill out the survey online, or they can scan and email a printed survey that was mailed to veterinarians in late January. The deadline to submit data is February 29, 2020.

The American Heartworm Society began drawing AHS maps in 2001. The maps are generated every three years and are used by veterinarians, animal shelters, animal rescue organizations and media to educate the pet-owning public about the threat of heartworm disease, according to the AHS. They’re drawn using data submitted by thousands of veterinary practices and animal shelters. They also chart the spread of heartworm into new areas of the country.

Heartworm can affect both dogs and cats, as well as ferrets, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Dogs are especially susceptible, and the best treatment is prevention, the FDA advises.

The disease is most common along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts from the Gulf of Mexico to New Jersey, and along the Mississippi River and its major tributaries, but it’s been reported in dogs in all 50 states, the FDA says. The heartworm society offers infographics for veterinarians that summarize the organization’s guidelines for dogs and cats.

“Every veterinary practice that submits data on the number of animals tested and diagnosed over the 2019 calendar year enables the AHS to create a more comprehensive and useful map,” said AHS President Chris Duke, DVM. “We urge every clinic and shelter—large or small—to take a few short minutes to submit their information.”

The survey results and map will be made available in April as part of Heartworm Awareness Month.

Boehringer Ingelheim, which makes the Heartgard Plus preventative, recently announced it’s ramping up its heartworm prevention program. The company’s Worm Wars campaign encourages clinics to get 20 new dogs on heartworm prevention, or 20 lapsed dogs back on prevention, during each month of the year.