In-Home Lab Work for Dogs & Cats

Heartworm Tests, Bloodwork & Fecal Exams at Your Door

Standard in-home heartworm testing for dogs uses the IDEXX 4DX SNAP, a rapid antigen test that reads on your kitchen table in 10 minutes. The 4DX detects heartworm antigen plus three tick-borne diseases common in Florida (Lyme, Ehrlichia, Anaplasma), which is why it is the panel we recommend annually for any dog with year-round outdoor exposure. A positive antigen result triggers a confirmatory test (Knott's microfilaria check or PCR) before treatment starts, and we coordinate that with your primary vet or our internal referral path. American Heartworm Society guidelines back annual testing for all dogs on prevention.

Central Florida has a 12-month mosquito season. There is no winter break in transmission risk the way there is in colder states. A dog can miss a single month of prevention and pick up enough larvae to seed a heartworm infection that takes six months to show on an antigen test. Annual testing for dogs catches the window between exposure and prevention restart. For cats, heartworm presents differently (often no antigen, just antibodies), and a feline-specific test panel is available when symptoms or risk factors apply.

A positive 4DX SNAP is not an emergency in the same-day sense, but it changes the care plan. Adult worms living in the heart are causing low-grade inflammation, and the dog needs a staged treatment protocol with melarsomine injections, strict exercise restriction, and weekly monitoring. We do not treat heartworm-positive dogs on a mobile visit; the case gets a same-day referral to a clinic equipped for the staged protocol, and we coordinate the handoff. Cases with active symptoms (coughing, exercise intolerance, syncope) route to our mobile urgent care vet or emergency mobile vet service depending on severity.

Annual wellness blood panels include a complete blood count (CBC) plus a chemistry panel covering kidney values (BUN, creatinine, SDMA), liver enzymes (ALT, ALP), glucose, electrolytes, and total protein. It is the same panel a clinic would draw, processed at IDEXX or Antech, and it catches the silent changes (early kidney decline, subclinical thyroid drift, mild liver enzyme elevation) that pets do not show symptoms for. For dogs over five years old we add a baseline wellness blood panel even if the dog looks perfect, so we have a reference point if something changes later.

At 7 years for most dogs (5 for giant breeds) and 10 for cats, we move to a senior blood panel every six months. It includes everything in the wellness panel plus T4 thyroid, urinalysis, and SDMA (a kidney marker that flags decline earlier than creatinine). This is the panel that catches early chronic kidney disease in cats and early hyperthyroidism in cats and dogs, both of which respond well to early intervention. For families weighing quality-of-life decisions, our signs it's time to say goodbye to your pet guide pairs with senior panel results to give a fuller picture.

Before any anesthetic procedure, including a routine dog dental cleaning, we run a pre-anesthetic blood panel within two weeks of the procedure date. A pre-anesthetic panel checks kidney and liver function (the organs that process anesthetic drugs), red and white cell counts, and clotting parameters. For younger healthy dogs the panel is the minimum (CBC plus six chemistry values); seniors get the full senior panel. Results decide whether the anesthesia plan needs adjusting, and our dog dental cleaning in Orlando guide explains how this folds into the pre-procedure timeline.

A standard fecal test is a flotation (concentrates parasite eggs in a solution so they can be read under a microscope) plus a Giardia antigen test that catches a common intestinal parasite missed by flotation alone. Together, the panel screens for roundworms, hookworms, whipworms, tapeworms, coccidia, and Giardia, which together cover the parasites Florida pets pick up from grass, sand, standing water, and other animals' stool. We recommend an annual fecal for healthy adult dogs and cats, and every six months for puppies, kittens, and pets with regular dog-park or daycare exposure.

You can collect a fresh sample (within four hours of defecation) before we arrive and we package it for the lab on site, or our veterinarian can collect a small rectal sample during the visit if your pet has not gone that morning. Either method is accepted by the lab. Each sample is labeled and shipped to IDEXX or Antech, and results email back in one to three business days. If your dog or cat has had recent diarrhea or unexplained weight loss, fecal testing pairs with a mobile urgent care vet visit so we can run a CBC at the same time and check for the bigger picture.

Central Florida is hookworm and roundworm country, both of which transmit through soil and stool and both of which pose a small public-health risk to humans (especially kids). Hookworm cases climb after wet seasons; coccidia and Giardia spike in puppies and kittens, especially those from shelter or rescue backgrounds. Tapeworm shows up in pets with active flea exposure (the flea is the intermediate host). A negative fecal does not rule out heartworm or tick-borne disease, which is why we recommend pairing it with the 4DX SNAP for a complete annual parasite picture.

We arrive in the scheduled window and spend the first five minutes letting your pet sniff our kit on their terms. Short history intake covers parasite-prevention status, any GI or weight changes, exercise tolerance for senior dogs, and litter-box habits for cats. We sit on the floor or kneel beside the sofa, no leashes pulled, no exam table, no clipboard between us and your pet. Most dogs and cats relax inside ten minutes once they realize the visit is happening in their own space.

Blood draws come from the cephalic vein on the front leg, the same vein a clinic technician would use. We use butterfly needles and EDTA tubes for the same panels a clinic runs, and most draws take under thirty seconds once the patient is settled. Owners usually hold the dog's head and gives a treat, no muzzling required for the vast majority of patients. Fecal samples either come from you (collected fresh that morning) or get collected on site. Heartworm 4DX SNAP runs right there on the kitchen table.

Before we leave, we walk you through what we drew, what we are looking for, and when to expect the result. Heartworm SNAP reads on-site (positive or negative within 10 minutes). Full bloodwork and fecal results email back in one to three business days, with the licensed Florida veterinarian who saw your pet calling you to review the values if anything looks off. Records land in your inbox formatted for pet-insurance claims, boarding facilities, and travel-certificate requirements. For families pairing lab work with vaccines, the same visit can cover mobile pet vaccinations.

Our mobile house-call fee is $95 and covers the trip plus a brief exam. The 4DX SNAP heartworm test for dogs runs $40 to $55 on top of the house-call fee, and the result reads in 10 minutes on-site. A second pet at the same address pays $40 for the second 4DX, no second house-call fee. An annual lab bundle (4DX heartworm + wellness CBC and chemistry + fecal flotation with Giardia) typically lands at $185 to $235 per adult dog, which is the cheapest and most common configuration.

A basic wellness blood panel (CBC plus six-value chemistry) runs $85 to $120, processed at IDEXX or Antech. Senior dog blood panels with T4 thyroid, full chemistry, urinalysis, and SDMA runs $165 to $220, depending on add-ons. Pre-anesthetic bloodwork before a dental cleaning or surgery is priced the same as the wellness panel for young healthy dogs and the same as the senior panel for seniors. See full pricing for the complete fee schedule.

Fecal flotation with Giardia antigen runs $35 to $45 as a standalone add-on, $25 when bundled with a heartworm test or wellness panel in the same visit. Travel certificates (USDA, international, interstate) are quoted separately, ask on the booking call. We accept all major cards, CareCredit, and Scratchpay. Most accident-and-illness pet-insurance plans reimburse lab work the same as a clinic-drawn panel; wellness add-on riders cover the annual heartworm and fecal at standard reimbursement rates.