Success Stories

Possum, February 2003

A small yellow Lab was found lying in a ditch and was taken by a kind rescuer to a vet clinic in Charleston, SC. This poor dog was covered in ticks and was near death from tick paralysis. Possum was treated successfully for dehydration and tick paralysis at the vet clinic, but unfortunately she also tested positive for heartworm. Newspaper ads and contacts with the local shelters did not turn up anyone to claim Possum. Her rescuer was able to pay for Possum's initial care, but asked LABMED for help in funding the heartworm treatment.

Possum was one of the many Labs and Lab-mixes whose heartworm treatment was funded with help from LABMED. Possum is one of the lucky dogs who can look forward to a healthy life as long as she receives a heartworm preventative on a regular basis. Heartworm is spread to dogs by mosquito bites and is detected by a blood test.

Prevention of heartworms is easy, but the treatment is hard on a dog. Heartworm preventatives kill the immature worms in a dog's blood and have little or no effect on the dog. Killing the adult worms is very stressful for a dog, requiring hospitalization and four weeks of limited activity to prevent damage to the lungs as the adult heartworms die.

Please help us to educate dog owners about heartworm disease. Not everyone is aware of how life-threatening heartworms can be and how easy it is to prevent them. There are very few areas of the US where heartworm is not a threat to the health of dogs for at least part of the year. Administering heartworm preventative on a regular basis is an important part of responsible dog ownership!

Update, March 2003

The heartworm treatments went well. Possum now has a new home who reports she is very gentle and sweet with their children. Because the two year old in the family couldn't say "Possum" and it came out as "Pasta" she also has a new name. Thanks to her rescuer's and LABMED's help Possum now has a wonderful new life.

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