# Heartwormer question



## WonderPup (Mar 23, 2011)

Hoping somebody will know the answer since it's late at night and I can't call the vet just now to ask  

Ordering the big dog's heartworm prevention and they sort of hover around the 50 lbs that is the weight limit for the medium size that I order. The new guy, Owen, weighed according to what I got from the original vet 51lbs and today I took him in to my regular clinic for a weight check and he weighs 49lbs. Now I'm not sure if I should go the next size up or not. I don't know if the first scale was accurate (I know sometimes they aren't 100%) or if it was a guess or what. Or if he really has lost weight while he's been with us these last couple weeks. He is being raw fed if that make a difference and I *think* he's eating enough. I haven't been at it long enough to know for sure just yet. He certainly seems to have transformed into a new dog but maybe he's just settling in  

So what should I order? If he goes a pound over is the Med. size really not going to cover him ? If my girls are a pound or two under will the larger size (if Owen needs that) hurt them? I'm trying to order all the same thing b/c it makes life easier if everyone get's the same dose (think husband helps with dogs and doesn't know much about who gets what). 

Opinions? Wisdom?


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## RawFedDogs (Jun 16, 2008)

Those numbers are no absolute. If you get a med for a 25 - 50lb dog, it doesn't stop working if the dog is 51lbs. Get whichever is easier for you. I don't think it'll matter. I think the smallest dose is probably better because you are putting a poison into your dog so the less you put the better off the dog is.


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## RaisingWolves (Mar 19, 2011)

I agree with RFD. 
I just wanted to add.... I give heart worm meds every six weeks (per a homeopathic vet's recommendation) and not 30 days.


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## RawFedDogs (Jun 16, 2008)

RaisingWolves said:


> I agree with RFD.
> I just wanted to add.... I give heart worm meds every six weeks (per a homeopathic vet's recommendation) and not 30 days.


Yes, me too and I only give it during mosquito season. My dogs only get about 4 doses a year.


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## pandaparade (Dec 29, 2010)

Really? Wow, thank you so much for that info. I will be using my heartworm medicine every six weeks and only in mosquito season... You guys are like... the best ever, I can not say it enough.


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## WonderPup (Mar 23, 2011)

Ah see I can't do that, the 6 week thing, we live in Fla and it's always "skeeter" season. I did forgo treatment last winter but it was REALLY cold VS just kind of cold. I was also so nervous about it at the time and then recently when we tested them that I just can't do it again. Year round for us I'm afraid. We also live right on top of a little wetland area so they are particularly bad here. I'm just not comfortable with the 6 week schedule though I have heard of it before. I worked at the vet clinic before I had a baby and there had three or four positives for heartworm every week, year round. It just scares me.  We don't normally test our dog's annually (we did this year b/c I was so nervous about it) and we don't purchase our product from our vet (we'd go broke). We order it to save $$. I can get 20 doses for 40 bucks.


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## RaisingWolves (Mar 19, 2011)

WonderPup said:


> Ah see I can't do that, the 6 week thing, we live in Fla and it's always "skeeter" season.



You can give one pill every six weeks, but use it year round. Heartworm preventative is good for up to 45 days. The reason most vets will tell you once a month is because it's easier for the pet owner to remember. 



Heartworm Medication: Is Year Round Protection Necessary? | Truth4Dogs

"Heartworm meds do not, by the way, prevent heartworms. They are poisons that kill heartworm larvae (called microfilariae) contracted during the previous 30-45 days (and maybe longer due to what is call the Reach Back Effect)."


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## SpooOwner (Oct 1, 2010)

The six week thing - is it the same for flea/tick prevention?


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## RaisingWolves (Mar 19, 2011)

SpooOwner said:


> The six week thing - is it the same for flea/tick prevention?



Do you mean oral flea/tick meds? 
I can't answer that for you. The holistic vet I consulted with told me not to use oral flea/tick control. I use topical and I'm pretty relaxed about applications. my dogs have never had fleas (knock on wood), and only a few ticks here and there.


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## WonderPup (Mar 23, 2011)

SpooOwner said:


> The six week thing - is it the same for flea/tick prevention?


Depends on what you are using and how well it works in your area, but yes you can get away with six or eight weeks or longer for topicals. For the last two years we've applied flea and tick every other month during the warmer months and not at all during the colder winter months. We treat our yard regularly and do a few things for control inside the house as well and it really cut our need for the topical almost entirely. We got a little infestation in Novemember b/c a client dog was infested and brought them into the house and right about the same time our neighboors kitty returned home from a week long adventure in the wilds and infested their yard. When they sprayed we could smell it AND the fleas jumped ship from their yard to ours which had not been treated since August b/c that is when we do out last round for the year. Anyway that was a nightmare and we had to use some serious chemical warefare to get rid of the problem at the time. Now we keep up with the more natural stuff and havent had an issue since. We are ordering some DE to treat the yard with this year and hope to see great results from that since we won't be spraying anything on the yard anymore. 

As for 30 day heartworm, that's probably a good point that the reason it's 30 days is it is easier to remember. I fall into the catorgory of people who need help remembering things :/ Even when it's on the calender sometimes


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## RawFedDogs (Jun 16, 2008)

Wonderpup: Heartworm prevenative is not something that stays in the body for a period of time. It kills any heartworm larvae that is in the body the day the "prevenative" is injested. It takes those larvae 45 days to mature into an adult heartworm. The "prevenative" will not kill adult heartworms. Soooo ..... Every 45 days is all that is needed. You add no value to it by giving it every 30 days. The company makes more money because you give 12 doses a year instead of 8 you would give by giving it every 45 days. Remember the "prevenative" only does anything the day that it's injested.


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## RawFedDogs (Jun 16, 2008)

I use flea & tick prevenative when I see fleas or ticks. Some years I don't need any. Other years 3 doses. Most years one dose is all thats needed. I see ticks a lot but almost always on me. I get 3 or 4 or more a week during peak tick season and don't find more than one a year on the dogs. Honestly I haven't found 4 ticks on dogs in the last 10 years. I brush my dogs somewhere around weekly and run a flea comb through their hair to see if any fleas are present.


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## SpooOwner (Oct 1, 2010)

WonderPup said:


> Depends on what you are using and how well it works in your area, but yes you can get away with six or eight weeks or longer for topicals.


Good to know. I live in a tick heavy area AND my dog is a tick magnet AND we hike a lot. I would love to be able to get away with the herbal tick sprays, but it's just not an option; I have to use the topicals. Suprisingly, I also have to use them year-round because she was picking up ticks even in late Nov and early Jan. I swear, if there's a tick anywhere within 5 miles, it will end up on my dog.


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## SerenityFL (Sep 28, 2010)

WonderPup said:


> Hoping somebody will know the answer since it's late at night and I can't call the vet just now to ask
> 
> Ordering the big dog's heartworm prevention and they sort of hover around the 50 lbs that is the weight limit for the medium size that I order. The new guy, Owen, weighed according to what I got from the original vet 51lbs and today I took him in to my regular clinic for a weight check and he weighs 49lbs. Now I'm not sure if I should go the next size up or not. I don't know if the first scale was accurate (I know sometimes they aren't 100%) or if it was a guess or what. Or if he really has lost weight while he's been with us these last couple weeks. He is being raw fed if that make a difference and I *think* he's eating enough. I haven't been at it long enough to know for sure just yet. He certainly seems to have transformed into a new dog but maybe he's just settling in
> 
> ...


I'm merely relaying what my vet told me.

When I took the hoodlums in two weeks ago (?), I got them their heartworm medicine. This was the first time for them and the boy weighed 42 pounds and the girl weighed 24 pounds. The vet had me give them both the medicine for medium because even though the girl was under, just in case she gained a couple of pounds, it wouldn't hurt her. He said going up another level wasn't a problem. 

However, one pound...if your dog is an adult, why not keep it at medium? It's one pound.

Also, yes, it is always mosquito season here so they have to get it all year long. And thanks for reminding me, today is the day I was to get that started. 

Shoving a pill down a dog's throat is always a joyous occasion.

Edit: Nevermind, that was easy. I didn't even have to put the pill in anything, they just gulped it down like it was a snack.


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## MollyWoppy (Mar 19, 2010)

I'm in Florida too and I give heartworm year round - every 5-6 weeks religiously. In fact just now I slammed shut the window as I can hear the mosquito sprayer ute coming around the streets. Heartworm prevention is one thing I am very careful about because the cure for heartworm is so hard on the dog and one where they could easily die, so there is no way I'm putting my dogs life at risk. 
Now, flea prevention is another story. I can't remember the last time I gave any type of flea treatment to my dog. Don't ask me why, she goes off road, runs through the paddocks, to the dog park and I only ever once found one flea in four years. Maybe it's because she does a lot of swimming? Either way, I'm as Happy as Larry bout that!


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## WonderPup (Mar 23, 2011)

RawFedDogs said:


> Wonderpup: Heartworm prevenative is not something that stays in the body for a period of time. It kills any heartworm larvae that is in the body the day the "prevenative" is injested. It takes those larvae 45 days to mature into an adult heartworm. The "prevenative" will not kill adult heartworms. Soooo ..... Every 45 days is all that is needed. You add no value to it by giving it every 30 days. The company makes more money because you give 12 doses a year instead of 8 you would give by giving it every 45 days. Remember the "prevenative" only does anything the day that it's injested.


I am aware of how it works and what it does. I've been playing this dog game for a very very long time. I don't recall suggesting it stayed in the body or that it would kill adult heartworms ??? I admited to being forgetful and falling into the group of people who are probably helped by giving the dose every 30 days because it was easier to remember. Being easier to remember on a 30 day schedule in fact DOES add value in my case. If the 6 weeks is harder for me to keep track of I run the risk of missing a dose entirely and having adult heartworms. A few heart worms won't be the end the world, they die off eventually and any babies they produce should be killed by regular doses of the meds. However, if I made a habit of forgetting and being late (past that 6 week mark) I runt he risk of eventually having an issue. So in my case, 30 days is better. I do a lot of things monthly and medications for the dogs just fits nicely the first week of the month along with my other beginning of the month chores and happenings. 

So again, Every 30 days is what I choose to do for my own peace of mind and to assure that my dog's are protected as best they can be. If that means giving four extra doses a year then that's what it means and I don't mind that. My mental sanity is worth it at this time, later it may not be such an issue. 

I am happy to hear you and others have success giving less frequent doses, success is always a happy thing and it will provide food for thought later should I decide to rethink my heartwormer strategy. We could debate all day which is the better way, and I'd be interested in said debate at another time but I've been "working" all day and am tired and YAY it's the weekend!!!


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