Last week we talked about Ivermectin used as a heartworm prevention and the possibility of overdosage. At the end of the blog, I made reference to safer formulations of heartworm prevention. This week I want to talk about the different options available to safely prevent heartworms in your pet. The list of preventions is bountiful but for the sake of this blog, I will focus only on the ones available at Leesburg Animal Hospital. On our shelf we have heartworm prevention in two different formulations, pills and topicals. The first pill we will discuss is Heartgard. Heartgard is the oldest monthly heartworm prevention available. In fact it was the very first monthly tablet available ever. I can remember when this product was launched; I was in junior high school. Heartgard completely wiped out the only prevention available at the time which was a daily tablet called Filaribits. Who remembers Filaribits? Geez that was a long time ago; I mean a REALLY long time ago. I graduated high school in 1994, so that was like over 20 years ago! YIKES!! Well, never mind all that, back to Heartgard. I get distracted. Heartgard is by far the most palatable pill we have. I would say 98% of dogs will eat a Heartgard pill, so this might be the choice for a finicky eater. Heartgard has an extra ingredient in it called pyrantel pamoate which also deworms your pet for hookworms and roundworms, common intestinal parasites. The second pill available is Trifexis. Trifexis is actually a combination pill. The heartworm prevention is combined with the popular and highly effective flea pill known as Comfortis. The heartworm component of this pill is as equally effective as Heartgard, but the pill is not quite as palatable. I would say about 85% of dogs will eat this pill. One fairly common side effect of this pill is vomiting. However, if given on a full stomach, that side effect is usually eliminated. In addition to being a heartworm and flea prevention, the active ingredient in Trifexis, milbemycin oxime, will also deworm your pet for the intestinal parasites, hookworms, roundworms and whipworms. The pricetag on this product is considerably more expensive than Heartgard, but when you do the math, you actually come out cheaper than buying a heartworm and flea prevention separately. Our third Heartworm prevention is Advantage Multi. Advantage Multi is also combined with a flea prevention and is the only topical prevention we have, which makes it good for those difficult to pill pets. The heartworm prevention portion of Advantage Multi is absorbed immediately once applied while the flea prevention portion remains on the skin for a month. Because of this, it is necessary to bathe the pet in a soap free shampoo to prevent the flea prevention from washing off. Advantage Multi also deworms dogs for hookworms, roundworms and whipworms and deworms cats for hookworms and roundworms, while also preventing ear mites. Without a doubt, living in the south puts your pet, dog or cat, at risk for heartworms. Just last night I noticed mosquitos swarming around my front door. Don't be fooled into thinking your pet is not at a risk because it is an inside pet. Sure, their risk is decreased but not zero. I like to compare heartworms to pregnancy. It only takes one sperm and it only takes one mosquito bite!! Protection is the key to prevention!
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Dr. Haley Hydrick Clark
Dr. Haley Hydrick Clark graduated from the University of Georgia in 1998 with a degree in Animal Science and from Tuskegee University in 2002 with a degree in Veterinary Medicine. Archives
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