Yes, cats can get heartworms.

Yes, cats can be infected by heartworms. But they do have a lesser incidence of the disease compared with dogs in the same geographical location. Female cats seem to have an even stronger resistance to heartworms than males. Unlike dogs, cats can remain asymptomatic throughout the course of the disease; eventually, heartworms in cats may die off without causing any serious harm to the lungs or other organs.

If you live in a region with a heavy heartworm incidence, it is recommended that your cat be put on heartworm prevention. This medication is safely formulated for felines and should be given orally once a month to prevent new heartworm infections. Currently, there is no safe method for killing heartworms in cats. For more in-depth information about feline heartworm disease, see the article Feline Heartworm Disease in our encyclopedia.

04/12/07