Canine heartworm disease is caused by heartworms, which are parasites that live in the bloodstream.

The main risk is congestive heart failure leading to death.

It is very rare for dogs to have complications. Most of the side effects involve a little bit of GI issue and of course they could have allergic reactions, but these drugs are usually typically very safe.

Yes, there are risks. The greater the stage, the more risk that you take when you're doing heartworm treatment. So you want to catch it as early as you can.

The complications of heartworm disease include exercise intolerance, coughing, potential heart disease and death.

Heartworm is very common in dogs, especially depending on the part of the country that you're in.

Heartworms are not normally visible unless they are not inside the heart. It's rare, but occasionally they can migrate to other organs, including the skin, and in these cases, you might see them crawling through there.

Heartworm is not necessarily painful for dogs, but it is uncomfortable. This discomfort is primarily due to the inflammation it causes in the heart and the lungs.

The possible signs that your dog has heartworm disease include coughing, exercise intolerance, lethargy, and weight loss.

It takes up to six months for the heartworms to fully develop into adults. Therefore, you're not likely to notice any signs until then. The symptoms also depend on the worm burden that the dog carries.