The Heartbreak of Heartworms
What do Overland Park, Kansas, the California cities of San Francisco, Thousand Oaks, Salinas and Oceanside, along with Laredo, Texas, Clarksville, Tennessee, Portland, Oregon Providence, Rhode Island and Jersey City, New Jersey have in common? They share the dubious honor of being named earlier this year, the top 10 cities in the United States with the highest percentage increases in positive heartworm tests in our companion pets.
This mosquito-borne disease can be deadly to cats and dogs. And it's one hundred percent preventable. But what if you don't live in one of these areas? What if your pet is totally indoors? What if you've never seen mosquitoes? Do you still have to worry? My guest today is an expert in veterinary parasitology and has had first-hand experience in the devastating effects that this disease can have on our pets. Dr. Cassan Pulaski has a masters of preventive health and is a doctor of veterinary medicine. She's a member of the Board of the Companion Animal Parasite Council, a post doctorate research and teaching associate at the University of Georgia, and director of the parasitology section of the Athens Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory. She knows what she's talking about. And we'll be chatting with her this week. Tune in!
BIO:
Cassan Pulaski, MPH,DVM, the NCVP-Merck Resident in Veterinary Parasitology, grew up in Mandeville, Louisiana, just outside New Orleans. She earned a B.S. in Biology and a B.A. in Psychology from the Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College at the University of Mississippi in 2008. She then completed her MPH and DVM degrees at Louisiana State University in 2012 and 2013, respectively. Following graduation from veterinary school, she began a PhD program at LSU under the guidance of Dr. Jack Malone in the department of Pathobiological Sciences, and in January of 2015, she officially initiated her NCVP residency program in clinical veterinary parasitology.
Dr. Pulaski’s research focuses on macrocyclic lactone resistance in Dirofilaria immitis, including the epidemiology and transmission dynamics of canine heartworm disease in the Lower Mississippi Delta region. She currently assists with teaching of both the veterinary Year II parasitology course and the Year IV clinical rotation, as well as working as a diagnostician in the parasitology section of the Louisiana Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory. Dr. Pulaski spends her Saturdays practicing at Garden District Animal Hospital, a local small animal general practice in Baton Rouge, and in her free time, she enjoys traveling and attending food and music events with her husband, Justin, and volunteering at vegetation planting days with non-profit groups aimed at restoring the Louisiana coastline. She is a self-proclaimed 'cat person' and although her husband is highly allergic, they have successfully survived their first 2 years of marriage along with their two cats, Fugee and Parchman.