The pup's vet visit should also be for the purpose of getting a heartworm "preventative" or a prescription for a heartworm "preventative". The "preventatives" kill immature heartworms and thereby "prevent" adult heartworms. The term "preventative"...

i give Kaydee what the vet recommended (heart guardplus) but i have known some people that give the horse wormer Ivermec to their dogs instead of the heart guard.... when i asked the vet he kinda rolled his eyes and gave an answer kind of like "hmm yeah well... its ok BUT... this is better"...

The term "heartworm preventative" is confusing. The "preventative" prevents adult heartworms by killing any existing young baby heartworms. If a dog gets baby heartworms from a mosquito bite and a "preventative" is given within a month, those baby heartworms are killed....