In graduate school I conducted research on heartworm disease and as a veterinarian I deal with it frequently, so I can provide a detailed response to this question.
There are both male and female heartworms (Dirofilaria immitis) which live in the heart and pulmonary vessels. The adult heartworms mate and, unlike many other parasites, which produce eggs, heartworms produce live offspring called microfilariae (singular form microfilaria). The microfilariae are NOT infective rather they have to undergo an obligatory developmental phase in a mosquito.
When a mosquito takes a blood meal from a heartworm-infected dog, it will draw in some microfilariae from the bloodstream. The microfilariae undergo changes in form inside the mosquito until it becomes an L3 (third stage larval form), which is the infective form. This typically takes 14 days or longer. When the mosquito takes another blood meal and injects the L3 heartworms into the skin of a dog (or cat). In 3-4 days, while in the skin, the larvae undergo another change in form to become an L4. Over the ensuing 2-3 months, they migrate to the heart/pulmonary vessels and gradually develop into the adult form. Approximately 6-7 months following the initial infection (when the L3s were injected into the skin) the adult worms are mature, begin mating and produce microfilariae.
They enter when you eat Raw meat
No, heartworms gather nutrients from the blood streaming by them. In fact, heartworms don't actually live in the heart of dogs - they live in the large pulmonary arteries in the lungs but swim into the heart after the dog dies.
No, beer does not kill heartworms.
Heartgard only kills the microfillare, the immature stage of heartworms (or baby heartworms). It will not kill the adult heartworms that live in the heart. That is why it is very important to have your dog tested first by a Veterinarian for heartworms.
Trees have nothing to do with heartworms.
There is no over-the-counter drug to cure heartworms.
Only if you have a mosquito on you that is carrying heartworms. It's extremely rare for humans to get heartworms, and I don't think it would be easy to transmit to your cat if you did have them.
One example of endoparasite is when dogs have heartworms. The heartworms are the endoparasite because they are living inside the dogs body. The heartworms are benifited, they are called the parasites, and the dog is harmed, it is called the host.
No
A creamy white
Yes.
heartworms are transmitted by the dog eating fleas (dead or alive) that has eggs in it and the hatch in the dog