Be on the Ball, Test for it All!
This year when doing your dog’s annual heartworm test, consider doing the SNAP 4DX Plus test
This is a test made by Idexx laboratories, and it is a convenient test that we have in-house. All that it requires is 3 drops of blood to run it (the same amount as a regular heartworm test), and you have the results in 8 minutes. The 4dx snap test is only $27 more than the regular heartworm test, but it tests for 4 different diseases: heartworm disease, Lymes disease, Anaplasmosis, and Ehrlichiosis.
Heartworm disease is transmitted by mosquitoes, while the other three diseases are transmitted by ticks. Most people know to test their dogs for heartworm annually, but the other diseases are becoming more and more prevalent in our area as well. According to the Companion Animal Parasite Council, in 2017 in McHenry County alone, there were 213 cases of heartworm positive dogs, 409 cases of lymes positive dogs, 182 cases of Ehrlichia positive dogs, and 89 cases of Anaplasma positive dogs. The value of the 4DX SNAP test is that it allows us to test for these diseases annually, and potentially cure them before the dog presents with actual signs of the disease. All four of these diseases can be fatal if left untreated.
So please, when you go in for your annual heartworm check this spring, ask for the 4dx test- you may just save your dog’s life.
