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!! :)

Mine take Heartguard and my old dog did too. I never had problems with it. Heartworm protection is very important for them.

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.

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.

Mine are on Heartguard year round. But we still have a yearly blood test just to make sure.

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

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. :)

Since your vet doesn't carry it, why don't you have him fax a prescription to Entirely Pets or Drs. Foster and Smith, one of the reputable online pharmacies?

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. :)

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.

That's also good to know. Comfortis is the "flea pill" right? I have my baby on Frontline spray that you spray on them every 3 months. I also use the Minksheen shampoo as another step to prevent flea and mosquito bites. Although the shampoo doesn't do all that much to prevent flea and mosquito bites. :) But I am very happy with what it does to her coat.

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. :)

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. ;)

Let me say that heartworm though present in California it is in very small pockets. California does have mosquito abatement and sprays regularly.
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.

Hi Mary. The vet won't cover treatment because there is no heart worm in the area in Mexico where I live. So there's no guarantee with him. I would have to talk about it with Itzel's vet in California if I want some sort of guarantee.

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.