The State - News from March 16, 1988

A new study shows that a surprisingly large number of California dogs suffer from heart worms, a disease that could pose a serious threat to canines for years. Tests conducted on 10,000 dogs in Alameda and Contra Costa counties showed that one in 100 were infected, said Dr. Rolan Tripp, California representative of the American Heartworm Society. “This is a slow, progressive condition, and my concern is that if no steps are taken to correct it, heart worm could become the most significant life-threatening disease in dogs in the next decade,” said Tripp, who is also a spokesman for the California Veterinary Medical Assn. “ . . . In some parts of the state--such as Grass Valley and Fresno--as many as 50% to 85% of dogs that are not on prevention have been infected.” Heart worms, spread by mosquitoes, prey mostly on dogs, but they also have been detected in cats, coyotes, foxes, sea lions, horses and people.