CANINE Flea, Tick and Heartworm Prevention

[HeartIandhank]

I took on a rescue pup almost 6 months ago.. He is an 11 lb terrier chihuahua mix.

So I had him on Trifexis.. first dose he was fine. Second dose he had side effects of vomit, tremors and lethargy. I thought maybe it was unrelated and all of these symptoms were, I guess, sort of mild.
Third dose he was fine. Fourth dose he was fine. Fifth dose he experienced extreme lethargy and bad tremors.. It REALLY scared me. I stayed up all night with him making sure he was going to be ok. The next day he was much better.. the following day he was back to 100%.
After the 5th dose I decided to absolutely end the use of Trifexis.. I read a little more into and saw many other dogs experienced the same side effects.Some experienced more extreme effects, some less. It was pretty bad though. I was very worried for my little friend.

So, I decided this time that I really need to research before making a choice as my best friend nearly died as a result of my last choice.

SO, what do you all use? Any recommendations? Any meds that you suggest to avoid?

 

[Beezcheeze]

I avoid using any topical liquids. I use comfortis and feed my dog a half sized meal or smaller 15 min before the dose. No problems since. Tri made my last dog vomit and lethargic everytime

 

[HeartIandhank]

Comfortis is also made with spinosad, like the Trifexis..
I wonder why the Comfortis was ok but not the Trifexis?
Perhaps the milbemycin oxime in Trifexis caused the effects?

 

[Beezcheeze]

Different dogs. I use comfortis with the dog I have now and the tri with my last dog. Guess only one had the reaction. I never researched it

 

[lahadaextranjera]

I was with my vet last week buying Drontal (worming). She explained the possibility of side effects. Your dog could have had one QUICK INJECTION to counteract the side effect.

Advantix for fleas as its better than Frontline. (leishmania protection).

Who prescribed this drug? Go back to the vet please.

 

[wascaptain]

once a month i give my dog the trifexis tablet and a squirt of ear mite meds. i do have to put the tablet down his throat once or twice before he keeps it down, i dont think he likes it.
i notice he does get alittle "sick"(leaves food in the bowl...sleeps..) for a day after.

just as a side note...i do skin it back and wash it for him ...he got it made

 

[dannyboy602]

Try Permitrin and Gentrol. Safe around humans and snimals. Permithrin is already used as a flea dip with dogs and its also used to treat outdoor clothing. Even kids clothes.
Gentrol is a powder. Applied in the rugs and areas where the insects nest, it interferes with the insects ability to molt, shedding its skin, affectively trapping the insect in the skin its in. Eventually the insect will look like its exploding out of its exoskeleton.
its pretty cool.
You can read the msds sheets on both products off google. Just enter MSDS for both products. Ive used both products and recommend them. Good luck.

 

[HeartIandhank]

Thx for the replies.. i will look into all these recommendations.

 

[sunni]

i always skip a month there isnt many ticks where i walk my dog , if i lived more near woods i would but i dont , i always skip a month, and i always use Revolution.

i also only medicate spring, summer and fall since in winter there are no fleas, ticks or mosquito to give heart worm in winter.

your dog is really small, try finding a medication suited for smaller breeds.

i know most companies have small breed, medium, large
but there might actually be companies who are specific to smaller breeds.
additionally you can do what i do , skip a month and see if that works

i bet if you use other brands the same thing will happen, it isnt the medicine so much as your dog is tiny, and most dog owners with tiny dogs dont take them out into anyplace where ticks would hit them so they dont medicate them and since smaller dogs are often less exercised they dont go for long walks in the forest, where as if you had a dog at 90lbs like mine who is hyper , you would have to walk him 3 hours a day min .

make sense? hope it does sorry LOL

 

[HeartIandhank]

Yeah, that makes sense. The thing is, we have fleas year round here, in the southern US. We rarely see a "freeze".. As an example, non evergreen perennials often can make it through a winter here.. So, I'm pretty sure that we are supposed to use preventative through the year.

 

[sunni]

Yeah, that makes sense. The thing is, we have fleas year round here, in the southern US. We rarely see a "freeze".. As an example, non evergreen perennials often can make it through a winter here.. So, I'm pretty sure that we are supposed to use preventative through the year.

what i think is happening, is that the medication is actually staying LONGER on your dog(this has to do with the body weight)
, so every other time you put it on your dog has a reaction because its TOO much medication per weight

this is why i actually skip a month because im paranoid to unintentionally over dose my dog on these medications.

this was also a common thing many other dog owners did to prevent accidental over dose , which is actually why i started doing it.
we get pretty bad fleas here in spring sum and fall, and mine doesnt get any fleas on his "off" months. so im pretty sure the medication while not as strong still works by the second month youre supposed to put it on.

 

[iamnobody]

I used to live/work on a animal rescue ranch.

We had cats that had REALLY bad flea allergies and would have to get shots once ever few months other wise they would scratch scabs into their skin.

As for the dogs... At the beginning of Spring/summer/fall they would get a dose of Flea medicine between their shoulder blades. Then again these were big dogs.

We tried the same brand (for cats of course) on one of our cats and it had a BAD affect. The little guy started foaming at the mouth and couldn't sit still. Poor guy had to be tripping balls or something.

We also used Dietanatious earth. Put a little in the cat boxes, and sprinkle a little bit in the bottom of their crates and it helps keep the flea's and ticks out.


For your little guy, I would recommend looking into something specific for your dog size/breed. Also make sure to put some distance between doses.

 

[HeartIandhank]

what i think is happening, is that the medication is actually staying LONGER on your dog(this has to do with the body weight)
, so every other time you put it on your dog has a reaction because its TOO much medication per weight

this is why i actually skip a month because im paranoid to unintentionally over dose my dog on these medications.

this was also a common thing many other dog owners did to prevent accidental over dose , which is actually why i started doing it.
we get pretty bad fleas here in spring sum and fall, and mine doesnt get any fleas on his "off" months. so im pretty sure the medication while not as strong still works by the second month youre supposed to put it on.

Ooook, now I understand what you are saying.. makes sense.

I'm too nervous to try the trifexis again.. that last time was a scary situation.. if it happened again I would not be able to forgive myself if it turned out worse.

I'll remember this though as we try a new med.. Thanks for taking the time.

 

[HeartIandhank]

I thought I would follow up in case anyone else has the same problem..

I got some free samples of Nexgard and Heartgard.. neither had ill side effects for my little pup..

He is prbly 11 lbs.. the meds are made for 10-29 lbs dogs (i think it was).. he is doing just fine

The problem is.. the shit is expeeensive.. Like, damn near $400 a year expensive.

Luckily my vet is also a customer.. we got a year of Nexgard and 2 years of Heartgard for free.

 

[sunni]

I thought I would follow up in case anyone else has the same problem..

I got some free samples of Nexgard and Heartgard.. neither had ill side effects for my little pup..

He is prbly 11 lbs.. the meds are made for 10-29 lbs dogs (i think it was).. he is doing just fine

The problem is.. the shit is expeeensive.. Like, damn near $400 a year expensive.

Luckily my vet is also a customer.. we got a year of Nexgard and 2 years of Heartgard for free.

yup it is, mine is 120$ every 3 months,

 

[st0wandgrow]

I took on a rescue pup almost 6 months ago.. He is an 11 lb terrier chihuahua mix.

So I had him on Trifexis.. first dose he was fine. Second dose he had side effects of vomit, tremors and lethargy. I thought maybe it was unrelated and all of these symptoms were, I guess, sort of mild.
Third dose he was fine. Fourth dose he was fine. Fifth dose he experienced extreme lethargy and bad tremors.. It REALLY scared me. I stayed up all night with him making sure he was going to be ok. The next day he was much better.. the following day he was back to 100%.
After the 5th dose I decided to absolutely end the use of Trifexis.. I read a little more into and saw many other dogs experienced the same side effects.Some experienced more extreme effects, some less. It was pretty bad though. I was very worried for my little friend.

So, I decided this time that I really need to research before making a choice as my best friend nearly died as a result of my last choice.

SO, what do you all use? Any recommendations? Any meds that you suggest to avoid?

Neem seed oil works well for fleas and ticks, but not sure about the heart worms.