Worm and flea pills

[Livia Free]

Can you please talk to me about worming pills and flea pills?

 

My doodle is 4 months old. The vet gave me a 6-month supply of worm (Heartgard) and flea (Comfortis) pills at the last vet check. I was leaving the office thinking that I would do what the vet recommended which is give her a pill every month, one for worms and one for fleas for the rest of her life. But as I got closer to home I started to think. Should I really be giving her poison on regular bases? Would I be risking too much if I waited until she had a problem and then just dealt with it e.i. treat for fleas once she gets them? I am just confused and don't really know what to do. The vet said the pills wouln't make her sick. Which, I don't know, I just have a hard time believing it. Poison it's poison...

 

What's your opinion? What do you do with your puppies?

 

Thank you!

 

Livia + Misha (4-month-old goldendoodle)

[Nancy Pyzynski]

Hello Jeanne,

Please keep us updated on how these things are working for you if  you would. I have heard that boric acid as a flea powder type of treatment works well and it is non toxic.  It can be used on carpets to kill fleas and even on tile and hard floors...look it up!

[Kay Bolin]

Hi Livia,

My Labradoodle is 9.5 months old.  On her first vet visit when we got her we got the same stuff as you and used it once.  Our vet also wanted to give Misty a second Rabies shot, because the first one was given to her in Texas where she came from and here in CA the license is given only if the shot is given to puppies over a certain age (which was one or two weeks after when Misty had hers).  I couldn't imagine doing that as I do not believe for an instant that these things are harmless.  Two rabies shots for a little puppy just was over the top for me. 

I subsequently joined two yahoo groups for people who raw feed their dogs.  [e-mail] and [e-mail].  These folks generally recommend that you not use these medications.  Their information is quite compelling.  I know there are risks involved in not using these meds, but there are also risks with using them.  So I choose not to at this time - emphasis on the last three words. 

There is a product out there called diatomaceous earth.  DE as they refer to it.  It must be food grade.  It can be used to control fleas.  I have some but have not yet used it as it has not become an issue yet.

I think we all have to do the research and make decisions like this and accept what results.  I made alternative type choices for my children when they were young and haven't felt like I made a mistake.  Hopefully I won't be sorry for the choices I'm making for my puppy!

Good luck with your choice-making.

Kay and Misty doodle

[Livia Free]

Thank you Kay! Appreciate your insight. That's alongside the line I'm thinking. I'll have to do a bit more research. I kind of decided that I will hold off until she's 6 months old and the re-evaluate. Thank you again!

[Livia Free]

Thank you for all your comments. I greatly appreciate it!

 

I debated over this with my DH and he basically said that 25 years ago, when his family had a dog, they gave her nothing for fleas or worms and she was just fine. I am originally from Eastern Europe and over there I don't think they give dogs chemicals for fleas. I remember my grandma picking her dogs fleas, her dog loving it. But of course, she was never flea-free. They also give dogs bones and cooked and baked bone, any kind of bones... But that's for a whole another post :)

 

I am still not decided on what to do about the pills but I have a feeling I'll do the wait and see approach. I'll wait until she's 6 months and then re-evaluate.

[Carla, Lucca and Izzy]

I'll be curious to hear feedback about Comfortis. My vet wants to put Izzy on it because she feels the Frontline Plus seems to be losing it's potency on quite a few dogs lately.

[Kooper Doodle]

Kooper and some of his doodle friends take this flea treat: 

http://www.fleatreat.com/

It's awesome!

[Nancy Pyzynski]

I was considering this.  They say it's effective for repelling ticks as well.  Have you found that to be true?

 

[Pat and Traveler]

I wouldn't have even thought about using a flea medication regularly for Traveler, but then we got a genuine flea infestation.  I tried for several months to get rid of them, both from the dog and from the house, and nothing seemed to help.  I tried Frontline and Advantix, natural herbal remedies, flea powder, etc.  Then found info about Comfortis, and got that.  At the same time I gave Trav Comfortis, I sprayed the house with a premise spray for fleas, and FINALLY they are gone.  I really don't want to have to go through that again!  The fleas were really bad last year in the Northwest, so maybe it was just an unusual year.

[Lauria Orr]

My understanding of the Heartgard is that if you interrupt the schedule of giving the med, you need to retest the dog for heartworm, as giving the med when the dog has the worm is dangerous. Unless you live in an area not prone to mosquitoes, I personally think it is a good idea to protect against it.  From what I understand, the heartworm is a pretty difficult problem to come back from .