Since summer is coming.. Does my baby need heartworm and flea protection?

[Yorkiemom1]

Originally Posted by pstinard

Yes, you need heartworm protection. I use Revolution, which is a topical (externally applied drops), and also kills fleas and internal parasites. It also comes in doses for dogs under 5 pounds. The only side effect Bella had was itching for about 15 minutes after it was applied. You have to be sure the drops make contact with the skin underneath the hair, and allow it to dry before you let the dog run off (takes about 5 minutes to dry), because the dog will be trying to rub it off.

I like the idea of "less is more"....Revolution will kill a variety of worms, fleas, some ticks, ear mites, as well as heartworms....I like that, rather than giving 2-3 different meds to kill everything they come in contact with. My vet used to not recommend it because she said people are in a hurry and do not apply it correctly, and then their dog gets heartworms and blame the drug. Be sure you part the hair, get the drop directly onto the skin, and allow it to dry before you allow pup to run around trying to rub it off.....it works great, I have used it for years, and I have never had a dog get heartworms. Here in Houston, they say if you let your dog go even one season without heartworm protection, you will get heartworms....so I definately suggest you protect your pup.....it is a risk I am not willing to gamble on.

[Cup]

Thank you for this post. I am a first time Yorkie mommy and was conflicted. Had always treated my Westie's and Cairn but Toni is so tiny I was afraid the med would do her more harm since she is primarily an indoor dog, although I have have been treated for deer ticsCup

[yorkiefan_]

Heartworm protection is an absolute must all year. My Cookie Monster takes Heartgard. One huge word of caution: even if you have a smaller pup, you cannot split the chew in two, as the drop of medicine is put on a random spot so that one piece will have the full dose and the other has absolutely nothing. Thus your pup must eat the entire chew, which won't be a problem, since they taste like beef. My Cookie loves her Heartgard more than any other snack.

Cookie also gets a monthly dose of comfortis for fleas. Not sure if a dog smaller than 6 pounds should get it, but it's a must for her. We like to spend a lot of time outdoors with Cookie (every dog needs outdoors time to play, dig, explore, etc.), so without it she picks them up like crazy. For a while I hated giving her flea drugs (comfortis smells like nasty chemicals) and would just comb her every night with a flea comb, but then she got worms from chewing on her fleas one time and after getting that taken care of it was obvious she needed flea protection. As for other flea meds, none of them worked for Minnie: it was only comfortis, and since it works well for Cookie, I haven't re-tried the others.

[chachi]

I use advantage and heartguard

[Cup]

Thanks for the advice. My Toni weighs about 3 pounds so I guess it is safe and a matter of her life and comfort to keep her treated.

Cup

[Ellie May]

No natural mixture is going to suffice.

I use Sentinel, every month, all year long, with yearly testing.

Please be careful with internet pharmacies. Some are legitimate and some are not,

Revolution does not protect against the deer tick, This would be problematic in areas where lymes is prevalent.

[theporkieyorkie]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

No natural mixture is going to suffice.

I use Sentinel, every month, all year long, with yearly testing.

Please be careful with internet pharmacies. Some are legitimate and some are not,

Revolution does not protect against the deer tick, This would be problematic in areas where lymes is prevalent.

.

I've been using Sentinal with Frontline and I had problems at the end of last summer with fleas. I plan on going back to Revolution.

[BabieChloe]

I think I will go with Revolution but I am going to ask my vet before I give Chloe anything. You have all given me very informative responses though, thank you very much!

[Britster]

Definitely give Heartguard or something for heartworms. Preferably year round.

I don't like the topicals for heartworm personally. And I use Heartguard Plus because the added flea protection in Sentinel is not necessary for us. We never see fleas so I prefer not to medicate against something we don't ever have.

I only use flea/tick medication when needed. I haven't applied flea/tick topicals to him since... probably July. I usually do an application every 30-45 days in the summer (June, July, August) but will sometimes have to in May or October as well, just depends on the weather and if the ticks are out a lot.