Veterinarians are reminding dog owners to protect their best friends against heartworms. Dr. Sonya Serad-Wright of Twin Pines Animal Clinic had personal experience with the deadly parasites. When she was a child growing up in New Jersey her family dog was one of the first in the area to get them. She says the death was miserable to watch.

Dr. Serad-Wright says every dog should should be on preventive medication beginning as a puppy. Dogs in all 50 states are at risk, and mosquitoes that spread the baby heartworms become active any time the temperature reaches 55 degrees, even in winter. Heartworms are a danger to more than 30 species of animals, but dogs are considered the definitive host. For more information click here.