Trifexis
 

I have 3 yorkies
One only weighs 4 pounds and the vet said it was ok to give her the full dose of the trifexis now she is laying in n my lap not at all like herself. She has been on this med, but I only gave her a half tab. This time I did what the vet said, now I'm having second thoughts she has thrown up and not at all herself.is this normal after the trifexis treatment. My other two are ok but they weigh more than this one does . I'm so worried. I'm considering not using this medicine any more

Hi,
What is this trifecta used for if I may ask? When you gave her the half dose did it help with her problem? Maybe,the vet thought it would be fine to give the full pill but if you tell him what you told us then he would know whether it was wrong to give her all of it. Unfortunately it can be trial and error for pets or people about medicines. Hope she does better whatever you decide is best to do for her. That's all we can do is what we see in our eyes is the best thing. Trial and error.

This drug is not made for dog's that small. Your Vet should know better. I would certainly get your baby to the Vet and have her checked out.

Trifexis has killed many dog's due to the reactions from it.

I pray your baby will be ok.

Not sure if this will help at all, but I have always just used Oatmeal flea and tick shampoo for my babies and they dont get any fleas or ticks. Our babies are so delicate on medications..I remember when Mimi had a c-section the vet was giving her liquid antibiotics and they were way too strong for her. She was throwing up like crazy! I had to leave her at the Vet all day for monitoring and to make sure she wouldn't get dehydrated from the throwing up. It ended up being the antibiotics were too strong for her little body. Let us know what they say!

Dogs in most parts of the US need some kind of heartworm treatment at the very minimum. There are alternatives to Trifexis. We use Revolution, which is drops that you put on the back of the neck once a month. Here is an article by a vet clinic: Animal Medical Clinic - Veterinarian In Fremont, NE USA :: Heartworm Disease . They recommend Heartguard or Revolution.

Tribe is has been known to often be problematic.
We use Revolution as my Cali is only 4 pounds and it dosed by size/weight.
Have had no problems with it.
Take care of your baby!

That medicine is deadly especially in small dogs. Don't give it again it's very dangerous!

Oh wow I learned something new today! My vet surprisingly didn't recommend to put them on anything and I'm not sure why. I'm going to ask about it. I could have sworn though a long time ago I heard about revolution killing pets? Maybe it was something else.

Where you have mosquitoes you have heart worms. Your dogs will need to be tested first and then I would suggest heartguard or interceptor. You need to get on this pretty quick.

If your dog has never been on any heart worm preventive make sure your dog has heart worm blood work done to make sure they do not have heart worms, if you put your dog on a heart worm preventive without doing the blood work it can kill your dog. All dogs must stay on a heart worm preventive ALL YEAR. Cody weighs 12 pounds, he is on Interceptor PLUS chewables. It also treats and controls intestinal parasites, roundworms, hookworms, whipworms and tapeworms. Every year he gets blood work to make sure he has no heart worms. As lovetodream88 has stated, "Where you have mosquitoes you have heart worms".

Thanks
 

Thank you Joan for that information. Kind of you.

:thumbup:;):)

No, it wasn't Revolution that was killing pets. Revolution is safe, and they make doses for smaller dogs under 5 pounds. There is a lot of controversy surrounding Trifexis, however. Maybe that's what you remember.

If you are in Florida, definitely ask your vet about heartworm preventative.

Yup the girls are scheduled to go to the vet next week so I'm going to ask then. I know when Mimi was pregnant we did the bloodwork on both of the dogs and they came out clear. 100% healthy dogs with no types of worms or anything at all.

What brand of Oatmeal flea and tick shampoo do you use? I've chosen to go the route of getting more heartworm tests duing mosquito season than to use any of the meds. I'm trying to find a good shampoo. Also, does the company make a repellant?

My vet is pushing the heartworm meds and I refuse. She is not happy so it may be time to find a holistic vet for Loki.

That is not a good idea. Adult worms are what show up and in order to kill them you have to use arsenic and it will leave your dog with health issues and could kill your dog. Please just use like heart guard once a year.

Do you mean once a month?

yes lol oopsie

I only use the oatmeal shampoo and conditioner before I got my dogs on heart worm medicine. I stopped using that shampoo bc my vet told me that those shampoos with sulfates wash away the medicine. I switched to tropi clean because it has all natural ingredients and I didnt want the shampoo washing away the $50 revolution treatment I got for the dogs, LOL!! BTW Tropiclean smells GREAT!!! I got the papaya and coconut one and I couldnt stop smelling my dogs after lol!

It says on the Revolution website that it's safe to bathe your dog 2 hours after applying Revolution. The medicine is absorbed through the skin into the body, so it can't be washed off. See the prescribing information here: http://www.revolution4dogs.com/images/revo-pi.pdf (the section on Administration). I always wait at least two days just to be safe, though.

No, sorry, I won't be giving Loki any heartworm meds. I've done a lot of research on this and, I find, that more antibody tests per year is a safer way to go. Heartworm meds don't prevent heartworms. They are poisons that kill the larvae. It takes very specific circumstances for heartworms to even occur in a dog. Also, as the antibody test finds the larvae, you can then put your dog on the same heartworm meds that some vets recommend giving monthly.

This is a great article on how dogs become infected with heartworms. Heartworm Medication Part 1: Truths, Omissions and Profits - Dogs Naturally Magazine

Also, I have checked the percentage of dogs in my area that get heartworm and at a percentage of .05-1% I think I'll take my chances. It's safer than the percentages of deaths due to the medications.

Plus, even if you give them the meds, it is recommended that you use some type of repellent on them. I'd prefer to make sure that they don't even land on him than to give him meds that can affect his immune system as well as other systems in his body.

Adult worms are what show up if you do the regular heartworm test. However, if you do an antibody test, the larvae will show up.

Your playing Russian roulette. It's much more poison when you have to treat for it then just the monthly pill. I know how heart worms work, I am in school to be a vet assistant. I think you have to look at which meds are causing the deaths because some are not safe. Be careful letting those holistic things poison you. Maybe you should check out skept vet it's a great source for real backed up info.

Adult worms show up in the antigen (antibody) test. The larvae require additional tests, including centrifuging or filtering the blood to concentrate the larvae so they can be viewed under a microscope, as well as a PCR (DNA) test. See: https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-p...isease-in-dogs . This article also has the following recommendation:

How can I prevent heartworm disease in my dog?

Annual heartworm testing followed by preventive medication is recommended to keep your dog free of heartworm disease. Several excellent preventative products are available to prevent heartworm disease in dogs. Your veterinarian can advise you on which product is most suitable for your pet, and whether year round treatment is necessary. Dogs in subtropical United States are at risk for heartworm year-round, while dogs in Canada, northern United States, and Alaska are most at risk during the warmer months (late Spring to late Fall). Dogs from lower risk areas that travel into high risk areas should be on preventive medication during the travel period regardless of the time of year.


I don't have enough time to refute the many false and misleading statements in the article from Dogs Naturally that you cite in another post above. However, even that article states in part 2:


"I am a researcher and holistic health advocate, not a vet. Please learn the facts then discuss with your vet the appropriate course given your dog’s location, lifestyle, travel schedule, health, climate and the time of year."


Here are some links to articles from Skept Vet discussing holistic treatments for heartworm:


There is no “Natural” or “Holistic” Heartworm Prevention or Treatment Proven to be Safe and Effective | The SkeptVet


Dr. Christina Chambreau: Another Homeopath Giving Bad Advice about Heartworm Disease | The SkeptVet


The biggest lie, of course, is that heartworm medications kill more dogs than heartworm disease does. That is scientifically and demonstrably false. I wouldn't recommend Trifexis, but there are certainly safe alternatives like Heartguard and Revolution.

Okay, there is one false statement in this quote that is particular deadly for dogs: "Also, as the antibody test finds the larvae, you can then put your dog on the same heartworm meds that some vets recommend giving monthly." I repeat, that statement is FALSE.

The antibody test tests for the presence of adult female heartworms only. (See https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-p...isease-in-dogs ) If you are going to use an antibody test and skip monthly heartworm medications, the antibody test needs to be done TWICE a year, and if it comes back positive, you will need to treat the dog with the medications to kill adult heartworms, NOT the monthly heartworm meds.

Below is the full quote from the article I cited above. As you can see, the tests are NOT perfect. Why would anyone living in a heartworm endemic area take chances with the health of their dog?:

Heartworm is usually diagnosed with a simple blood test. There are two main tests for detecting heartworm infection; one test detects adult worms and the other detects microfilaria.

Testing for Adult Worms: The American Heartworm Society recommends using the Heartworm Antigen Test as the primary method of testing for adult heartworm infection. This test is specific for the adult female worm. Antigen is detectable by 6½ - 7 months after infection and positive results are possible using some tests when there are as few as 1-3 adult females in the heart.

Antigen tests will be falsely negative if:

the infection has been present for less than 5 months (dog is infected but too soon for adults so there is no antigen present)

the worms are all male or all immature females (no adult female worms so no antigen present)

there are very low numbers of worms (level of antigen is too low to detect)

there are technical difficulties doing the test itself (test should be repeated)

Testing for Microfilaria: Any antigen test that is positive or “weak” positive should be followed up with a test for microfilaria. The presence of microfilaria confirms that mature adult worms are present in the heart and indicates the need for specific treatment to kill microfilaria. The best tests for detecting microfilaria are called concentration tests. The preferred test is the modified Knott's test, which involves using a centrifuge (a machine that spins the sample very quickly in a small circle) to concentrate the microfilaria; the other common test is the filter test, which involves passing the sample through a very fine filter that traps the microfilaria. In both tests the microfilaria are detected and identified using a microscope.

Microfilaria tests may be falsely negative for several reasons including:

none of the adult worms are mature enough to mate and produce microfilariae

all the adult worms are of one sex so mating cannot occur

there are too few microfilaria in the bloodstream to be detected (mating is just beginning, or there too few adults to produce large numbers of microfilariae)

Hi.....I did the Trifecta sample with my little guy on Monday. He became lethargic, threw up twice and was completely not himself. He slept all day and twitched a lot and when he wasn't asleep his eyes looked weird. He is himself today but I will NOT be giving him that again. It was scary!!!