Communicating the value of heartworm prevention

The American Heartworm Society (AHS) recently released an updated map of heartworm incidence in the US, along with results of the organization’s triennial survey of veterinary practices around the country.¹ In an interview with dvm360, Marisa Ames, DVM, DACVIM (Cardiology), president of the AHS and an associate professor of cardiology at the University of California, Davis, Weill School of Veterinary Medicine, discussed the survey results, shifting hot spots, and prevention methods for individual patients and the greater community.

In this video, the third in a series, Ames shares how client communication can help reduce the transmission of heartworm infestation and improve adherence to preventive therapies, and why the entire veterinary team should be educated about heartworm disease. The following is a transcript of the video:

dvm360: How can clinicians enhance communication with clients about heartworm disease?

Marisa Ames, DVM, DACVIM (Cardiology): Training the entire staff about heartworm disease in general, and by entire staff, that's everybody. So, training about common questions that might come up. Or maybe there are point people in your facility, technicians or other staff members, that might be able to talk to an owner that has questions. ‘What does my preventive do? What do you recommend?’ Training [staff] that, generally, year round heartworm prevention is recommended, that because [of the] difficulty in predicting seasonality, it's better to just protect year round and not guess about mosquito prevalence. There's also some thought that there's improved compliance if a client is giving it year round and doesn't have to start and stop with the season. So, training them to kind of help broach those questions that might come up of, ‘why can't I just do seasonal prevention?’ Or, if you live in a more northern climate, clients might not think it's necessary at all.

Having [the veterinary team] ready to talk to owners about prevention, and educating staff to get ahead of myths. So the ‘indoor only pet’ myth. Just because a pet is indoors only doesn't mean they don't need prevention. We all know that we get bitten by mosquitoes when we're inside our house too. Some clients will say, ‘if I don't see any mosquitoes, it's just not an issue. I don't get bitten.’ And [we’re] trying to just combat those myths ahead of time. Another one is the seasonality. And ‘it's too cold here.’ But we know that mosquitoes are smart. They find barns, etc, and they can actually hibernate. Or overwinter, where they had an infection during a warmer period of time with heartworm. That heartworm larvae can just pause and then pick up developing after a mosquito emerges.=

Mosquitoes are smart. They will continue to be a pest. And so it's just hard to guess, to know when a pet is exactly at risk, even in some of the cooler climates.

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Reference

Crossley KC. New heartworm incidence map shows shifting hot spots. dvm360. April 13, 2026. Accessed April 24, 2026. https://www.dvm360.com/view/new-heartworm-incidence-map-shows-shifting-hotspots