Ivermectin for DOGS for Heartworms?

[naakte]

Quote:
IMO with heartguard it is too easy to under or over dose a dog what does it come in small, med, large, extra large? I want to give my dogs the least amount of med that will do the job. ivermectin must be more exact than heartguard is. 1 diabetic unit per pound of body weight. next is the expense I can take excellent care of my dogs HW prev for pennies compared to using heartguard . and heart guard plus is simply one added ingredient med which is pyrantel pamoate which is an excellent wormer and very very safe to use. when I have a litter on the ground i begin Pyrantel at 2 weeks old.

If I only had one dog i would still do it myself because as I said i want to give the absolute correct minimum dose and you just can not do that with heartguard

Do I trust pharm companies that make these things for our dogs well, NO i don't remember proheart 6. It was released with great promotions. pharms offer doctors /vets incentives to push their products with little regard to the family loved pet IMO. Proheart 6 came out and people were literally guilted into using it by vets and vet techs because it was only to be given once every 6 months as opposed to monthly. when dogs began dying and getting very sick from it, it was of course pulled from the market. I understand they have put it back with a warning sheet???? geeeze .

If it has not been on the market for 7 years my dogs do not need it.

Another thing that really bugs me is that the rabies vaccine is labeled as 1 year or 3 year (and sold accordingly).. that is a sham and shame on who is allowing it to be labeled that way. How many people faithfully vet their dogs and get a yearly rabies shot? it is ALL 3 year rabies for Gods sake. and you can do a titers to see if your dog even needs a rabies shot!!!!!! titers does cost more than doing a rabies shot, but your dog wont have to have unneeded medications either. What i do for my dogs is give rabies shot at 4 months old, rabies the following year, then every 3 years. I buy my rabies in 10 dose vials from the feed store.

I am not a vet, before you make any changes in how you are caring for your animals you should seek advise from a licensed professional.

Donna In Branson

 

[wekiva bird]

I have GSD for over 42 years they have been in the stuff for a long time ,once a month. But some dogs have the MDR1 gene and they can not take the Heartguared , Ivermectin and etc.DNA Test to see if your dog is a carrier It can be any breed..
Quote:
There are untold numbers of living German Shepherds that have been on either Heartguard or Ivermectin since they were pups. It is collie type dogs that have no tolerance for the drug. If my vet prescribes it, I know it's safe. If my German Shepherd was going to have seizures or die, she's waited 5 years to do so.

 

[Akane]

More than just collies are having problems. Even some nonherding breed dogs have been found to carry the gene. It's just much less common.

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

Why don't ya'll use the heart guard stuff that is made specificly for dogs as a preventative?

One pill once a month, safe, sure, easy and not that expensive.

This is why:

Heartguard:
6 Month Supply $48.99 Save 43% vs. Vet's price (+ Free Shipping)

50 Ml bottle Ivomec:
Ivomec Ivermectin Injection Cattle Dewormer, 50 ml

Availability: In-Store Only
Price: $37.99

There's enough Ivomec in that bottle to equal far more more than 500 doses of the Heartguard.
It will keep 3 years in a refrigerator​

 

[naakte]

Quote:
I never had a problem using the horse dewormer on my retriever, but it's harder to get the right amount for dogs out of those tubes without going overboard or underdoing it. So the other would be better because it is more measureable.

sweetie, you are very wrong here. ivermectin should NEVER be given to any dog over 4 months old that had not been tested first for HW. it would likely kill the dog. also a large percentage of colllies can not tollerate ivermectin, and there is now a test to see if your collie can take ivermectin safely

 

[drpeeps2014]

Quote:
To put it simply: Some collies carry a genetic mutation that allows ivermectins to be trapped in the brain and build up over time. In normal dogs, the drug is pumped out into the bloodsteam and is broken down safely.

 

[drpeeps2014]

Quote:
This is why vets want people to use the products they sell, yes they make money from them too, but the majority of people are confused, will make mistakes, and give the wrong dose. If a vet were to tell a client go ahead and give this dose, and the owner doesn't give the correct dose, the vet could be sued. Unfortunately, people are starting to become sue happy even with vets now, and they have to cover their butts for everything. Same goes for prescribing preventative without having a negative test first, but if there were a reaction, the vet could be sued and lose his/her license. At the clinics here in town, people used to have to sign a waiver addressing the risks of dispensing preventatives without knowing the dogs status, now all clinics require the test. Not all vets are out to get you, most want the best, highest quality, and SAFEST care for your animal.

You don't get rich being a vet, you pay off school loans nearly all of your life. Most vets now come out of school with well over 100k in loan debt, and most don't make much above average salary.

Kudos to the people that are responsible enough to do their research and be careful with it though, I understand the high prices of these products marketed for pets are sometimes unfair. Much rather have this happen than the pets not be on anything at all. Iverhart is the generic of heartgard, and is more fairly priced. It should really be used if you have ANY doubts in your ability to use a livestock product. It just depends on how much you care about your animal and how much risk your willing to take with their health/life.

In regards to cats, they do get heartworms. They do not get the high numbers of heartworms like dogs do (hundreds). They have a few, and it affects their lungs more so than their cardiovascular system. In cats the lungs become damaged, if it goes on for long enough, and enough of the lung tissue is damaged, they can lose lung function and not not be able to breath. Products for cats are advantage multi and revolution. I would not risk trying to make a small enough dose of livestock ivermectin to give to a cat.

Personally, if I were not trained in the medical field, I would not think of trying this. Care too much about my dog, he is like my child. I understand not everyone regards their pets in the same light however.

 

[Doc Henry]

Every time I see this discussion come up on any forum I cringe. Would you go to the feed store and buy an injectable drug to treat your kid? I didn't think so. Don't believe everything you read on the net from unqualified people. Just because its sold without prescription does not mean it is safe to use. Chances are your vet makes a decent living off the "OTC" flea and tick meds sold at the local grocery store treating the reactions to them, And i can tell from personal experience every single one of those clients says the same thing, "I thought it was safer because it is sold at the grocery store and not at a clinic"
Some of the previous posts have some accurate info in them some are totally wrong. Dr Peeps said it all very well.

 

[Jamie_Dog_Trainer]

"Unqualified" is in the eye of the beholder. The truth is you can get accurate information off of the internet in good Veterinary websites. Collies are prone to more issue with Ivermectin. Most dogs do ok with it. I have used Ivermectin in dogs for years and years, never had an issue. Of course I had two mentors in this, one of which was a Veterinarian. Traditionally you shouldn't use ivermectin on dogs that have tested positive for heartworm.

 

[bagendhens]

i use bottle ivermectin on our dogs, i dont like heartguar, the dosages are all over the place, ive got a 3lb, 4lbs, 2 5lb a 10 lbs and a 30lb dog to treat, the dosage for the 3lb dog on heartguard is also strong enough to treat a 25lb dog...thats a HUGE difference in size, especially when your dealing with such tiny breeds (22lbs is nothing in giant breeds. but in toy dogs, thats enough to treat my 3lb dog 8 times over...

so instead i use an insulin needle because i can very accuratly measure dosages for each individual dog, i know my 3lb dog is only getting enough for a 3lbs dog, while my 10lb dog gets enough to treat a 10lb dog and the 30lb dog is getting the right dosage for him too...
its also a tiny fraction of the price that reating all those dogs with heartguard would be...

and with the heartguard, because the ivermectin (active ingredient) isnt evenly distributed through the chewable its impossible to break the treat in half and get the right dosage for the smaller dogs...

to give it to the dogs i usually take a small peice of bread with a little low salt peanut butter on it, inject the ivermectin into the bread and yumm...
it is very bitter and the peanut butter seems to 1: dull the taste and 2: akes the bread stick to the roof of the mouth so they have to eat it rather than spitting it out lol. yes im sneaky

and as a side note...
my vet was the one who suggests i use the ivermectin from the feed store and gave me the dosages too!
shes a very "progressive" vet and absolutly great when it coes to this stuff.

not for use in collies, be very carefull using it for any of the herding breeds in general. sighthounds can also be sensitive to ivermectin


in terms of dosage, i was told 1/10ths a cc per 10lbs...

so you ideally want to find a 1cc needle (insulin)

for a 100lbs dog you want 1cc
for a 150lbs dog you would dose at 1.5cc
200lbs would be 2cc
and so on.

if you look at a 1 cc needle you will notice its mared clearly at 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70 ,80, 90, and 100 each of those notches is 1/10th of a cc (100 being a 1cc)
in between the large lined numbers are tiny notches... which i belive ar .02 of a cc

so for the 30lb dog i fill the insulin needle to the 3 mark...(3/10ths a cc)
for the 10lb dog its the 10 mark (or 1/10th cc)
for the small dogs it gets a little tricker but for the 5lbs ers i get 1/10th and then squirt 1/2 of it into each peice of bread. and for the 3 and 4lb dog i use the .02 (or tiny lines) 2 1/2 tiny lines for the 3lb er and 2 tiny lines for the 4lber...
it realy is a tiny tiny amount but with the insulin syrnges you cant suck it up fast anyway due to the tiny guage of the needle.

for big dogs its ALOT easier to see as a 100lb dog would be 1 full cc... ect ect.

oh and if it makes it easier, 1cc is equal to 1ml (5ml = 1 teaspoon)

hope that helps....

ill try and post a picture of my insulin needles and diagram it if more help is needed...