|
Welcome to the YorkieTalk.com Forums Community - the community for Yorkshire Terriers. You are currently viewing our boards as a guest which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our free community you will have access to post topics, communicate privately with other members (PM), respond to polls, upload content and access many other special features. You will be able to chat with over 35,000 YorkieTalk members, read over 2,000,000 posted discussions, and view more than 15,000 Yorkie photos in the YorkieTalk Photo Gallery after you register. We would love to have you as a member! Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free so please, join our community today! If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please click here to contact us. |
|
| LinkBack | Thread Tools |
06-12-2010, 07:15 PM | #1 |
YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: California
Posts: 581
| Starting Heartworm Meds Hello everyone. I have a few questions about heartworm medications. My baby is 2 years old and has never been on a heartworm medication. We spend most of our time in Guadalajara and I asked Itzel's vet about heartwork prevention and he told me there is no heartworm in this area. The problem is that there is heartworm in California where we spend a few months at a time, usually before the mosquito season begins. Well, this year we're going to be spending a lot of time in California and now that my family lives out in the country, mosquitoes are going to be a big problem. So I want to start my baby on a heartworm preventive. My questions are: should she have blood work done to check if she has heart worm before starting her on the medication? What medication is usually recommended? I think the vet here carries Heartguard, but I don't really remember. Are there any side effects I should look out for when I start her on any heartworm prevention regimen? Thank you all for the help!!
__________________ Mommy to Itzel Mirai and new mommy to Olivia Ilse. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2041766&id=28002407&l=fe7f758320 |
Welcome Guest! | |
06-12-2010, 07:22 PM | #2 |
YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: USA
Posts: 798
| Mine take Heartguard and my old dog did too. I never had problems with it. Heartworm protection is very important for them.
__________________ MuffinBoomer |
06-13-2010, 04:09 AM | #3 |
Donating YT 500 Club Member | Most definitely you need to have her tested for heartworm BEFORE you start preventative. We use Heartguard here and have had no problems with it, but I would think, as with any medication there are possible side affects.
__________________ ~Ruby, Reno, Razz, & Jack~ |
06-13-2010, 04:30 AM | #4 |
And Rylee Finnegan Donating Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Metro Detroit, MI
Posts: 17,928
| Yes, the test should be done before. I like and use Interceptor. Heartgard is fine. There should be a list of side effects on the box insert, but most dogs do really well with them.
__________________ Crystal, Ellie May (RIP), Rylee Finnegan, and Gracie Boo🐶 |
06-13-2010, 04:39 AM | #5 |
Donating YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: E. Falmouth, Mass
Posts: 2,102
| Mine are on Heartguard year round. But we still have a yearly blood test just to make sure.
__________________ Rosemarie, Levi and Lily "The purity of a person's heart can be quickly measured by how they regard animals" ~ Anonymous |
06-13-2010, 07:14 AM | #6 |
Donating YT 2000 Club Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: North Carolina
Posts: 8,317
| I prefer Interceptor. Studies have linked Ivermection, the active ingredient in Heartguard to seizures in some dogs. Ivermectin Toxicity Ivermection should never be used along with Comfortis! COMFORTIS® and ivermectin interaction Safety Warning Notification |
06-13-2010, 08:34 AM | #7 |
YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: California
Posts: 581
| Thank you everyone for the replies. I'm going to drop by her vet today (I have to check if it's open) and talk to him about having blood work done tomorrow morning and then having him get the Heartguard or Interceptor. They don't usually carry and heartworm preventive in the office. They have to special order it, since there's no heart worm here. The funny thing is that there is Leptospirosis here, but none in California where I live. I still don't do the Lepto shot anyway. But thank you everyone again for your help.
__________________ Mommy to Itzel Mirai and new mommy to Olivia Ilse. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2041766&id=28002407&l=fe7f758320 |
06-13-2010, 08:56 AM | #8 | |
Donating YT 2000 Club Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: North Carolina
Posts: 8,317
| Quote:
| |
06-13-2010, 02:59 PM | #9 |
YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: California
Posts: 581
| Hi. That is a good idea. He doesn't always carry it in the office but he can order it for me. I just spoke to him today. We're having her blood drawn tomorrow morning. He's also supposed to let me know the prices for the medication. If it's cheaper on drsfosterandsmith.com then I'll have him fax the prescription. Does it matter if it's from a Mexican vet and most likely in Spanish? If not, I'll get the meds here so that I can start her on it before we get back to California. Thanks for the suggestion.
__________________ Mommy to Itzel Mirai and new mommy to Olivia Ilse. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2041766&id=28002407&l=fe7f758320 |
06-13-2010, 03:07 PM | #10 |
YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: California
Posts: 581
| I just read the treatment for heart worms. I'm so scared that my baby may test positive for them. She wasn't outside much in the U.S. the short month we were there in the summer. She spent a lot more time outside last month, but because it was still a little chilly, I didn't see mosquitoes around. I just hope she didn't get bitten and get heart worms because of my ignorance. I read that it takes 7 months for them to develop, so if she was bitten during the last few months and got them, I hope the Heartguard can kill any larvae before they become mature worms. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the results come back negative.
__________________ Mommy to Itzel Mirai and new mommy to Olivia Ilse. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2041766&id=28002407&l=fe7f758320 |
06-13-2010, 03:11 PM | #11 | |
YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: California
Posts: 581
| Quote:
__________________ Mommy to Itzel Mirai and new mommy to Olivia Ilse. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2041766&id=28002407&l=fe7f758320 | |
06-14-2010, 02:16 PM | #12 |
YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: California
Posts: 581
| I had her blood work done this morning and she tested negative for heart worms. Yupppeeeeee!!!!!!! I'm going to have her tested again next year just to be sure. Itzel's vet is going to order the medication for me and it should arrive within 2 days. He's ordering enough for a year, so she'll be okay until next year. I spoke to him about the Drs. Foster and Smith site and he said it was a good option if the medication was really pricey over here. But it's at a great price over here and available, so he went ahead and ordered it for me. Thank you everyone again for the help.
__________________ Mommy to Itzel Mirai and new mommy to Olivia Ilse. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2041766&id=28002407&l=fe7f758320 |
06-14-2010, 02:44 PM | #13 |
My hairy-legged girls Donating Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: lompoc, ca.
Posts: 12,228
| I've never had a dog on any type of heartworm medication, even my 16 year old chihuahua. I don't use any type of medication/chemical as they can do so much more harm than good. There are too many holistic products that work better and are completely safe.
__________________ AZRAEL RAZAEL JILLI ANN |
06-14-2010, 03:20 PM | #14 | |
Mardelin Yorkshire Terriers Donating Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: California
Posts: 14,776
| Quote:
When I lived in Texas where heartworm is prevelant I had all my dogs on Intercepter. There is one problem with ordering the meds from Foster & Smith. Should your dog develop heartworm your vet will not cover treatment. Where if you purchase your meds from the vet, it is covered. You might want to discuss this further with your vet.
__________________ Mardelin Yorkshire Terriers | |
06-15-2010, 05:30 AM | #15 | |
YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: California
Posts: 581
| Quote:
I live in Northern California. I tried doing a Google search but couldn't find a website that stated what areas have heartworm. It said something about the foothill area. I'm pretty close to Sacramento so I'm not sure if that would be a risk factor. Plus my family just moved out into the country last year. My family told me that last year there was a huge swarm of mosquitoes. They told me that in the short space it took to get from the front door to the car, they would be covered in mosquitoes. They called the country office to report it and they said several people had already complained as well. They came out to spray for a few days, I think. It took care of the problem but it was a few days before they came out. In that time frame, had I been in California, maybe my baby could have gotten heartworm (if it's in the area where I live). Does anyone have a site that tells you more? I saw a poster at her California vet and remember seeing my area highlighted. But I'm not 100% sure. I'm going to talk to her California vet to see what months she needs to be treated. Thanks again for the information.
__________________ Mommy to Itzel Mirai and new mommy to Olivia Ilse. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2041766&id=28002407&l=fe7f758320 | |
Bookmarks |
|
|
| |
|
|
SHOP NOW: Amazon :: eBay :: Buy.com :: Newegg :: PetStore :: Petco :: PetSmart