Are there any safe, alternative treatments to kill off adult heartworms in cat?

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We came home on Friday at 5:00 PM to discover our 8 month old kitten in full respiratory distress. We believe his crisis started with him losing control of his bowels in the hallway, then crawling, unable to catch his breath and panting to the downstairs bathroom cabinet under the sink, where we found him. Upon picking him up, he screamed and yowled all the way to the car. We rushed him to emergency vet where he was excreting foam and blood from the mouth. He was immediately treated with pure oxygen and lasiks, later, chest x-rays were obtained and full blood panel. His lungs were full of fluid. Blood work was mostly positive — kidneys and liver good. Hematocrit elevated (I believe — not enough oxygen circulating in the blood.) and his blood sugar was almost triple. Later, he was tested for FIV, FELP heartworm. Only heartworm was positive. He was discharged home to us the following day after one large dose of antibiotic and prednisolone. We have an appointment to follow-up with his vet tomorrow. My concern, of course, is recurrence when the worms die off. There are only a handful of alternative treatments mentioned for cats online and I know in the wrong dosage, wormwood (for example) can be toxic. I’m interested in knowing your thoughts or experience with food grade diatomaceous earth and/or pumpkin seed oil? Thank you!

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Asked on May 31, 2017 7:02 am
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I have no experience with alternative treatments for heartworm in cats. The condition is unusual enough that I would not recommend stepping out of the veterinary standard treatment!

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Posted by Dr. Gaylord Brown
Answered on May 31, 2017 9:52 am