Why is this so important?
Heartworms is a condition in dogs caused by parasites that are transmitted to dogs via mosquitoes, It is a very dangerous disease and can kill a dog if untreated. Public shelters rarely have the money to treat heartworm disease. As such, dogs with heartworms are most often euthanized, despite being very adoptable. Often, the only way a heartworm positive dog leaves a shelter is if a rescue group takes it. The good news is that Dallas Animal Services now tests dogs available for rescue by local groups for heartworms. The bad news is that so many test heartworm positive. While the information allows rescue groups to make more informed decisions when deciding which dogs to rescue it also presents another dilemma. Heartworm treatments, depending on the type, can run any where from $100 to $425. These treatments cannot be recouped from adoption fees and have become an additional 'line item' rescue groups must raise money for. Sometimes they must make the difficult decision not to rescue heartworm positive dogs due to the cost.

Dallas Animal Advocates wants to help. In order to defray these medical costs and offer the opportunity for more highly adoptable but heartworm positive dogs to be rescued from Dallas Animal Services, we offer a large percentage of the treatment costs to groups that pull these heartworm-positive dogs into their rescue programs. (The amount will differ based on the dog's size and type of treatment.)




Click to meet our Heartworm Graduates!