Heartworm
Tale Of A Dog With No Heartworms
How does such a thing happen? This little dog came to me Monday, having never seen a veterinarian in her life. And she’s 10 years old. And her fecal flotation is negative for intestinal parasites. And her heartworm test is negative. It seems so amazing as to be impossible, but it’s true. Granted, she will […]
Continue ReadingAvermectin Safety In Dogs
Sammi Jo, RAHT*, writes from Central Alberta, Canada, “Hey Dr. Randolph! So I had a question today from a client at the clinic I work at, and it had to do with Revolution (selamectin) Topical Dewormer. A client who was told by her breeder (Australian shepherd) that Revolution or anything of the avermectin family was toxic […]
Continue ReadingConserving Immiticide For Canine Heartworm Treatment
Editor’s Note: As of December, 2011, Immiticide was again available through Merial’s European source. Recently, Merial announced that the only FDA-approved heartworm treatment medication, Immiticide, had become completely unavailable. Previously, we received word from Merial that the medication was in short supply. Unfortunately, efforts to restart manufacture have failed. What does that mean for you […]
Continue ReadingDogs Must Have Heartworm Test When Heartworm Preventive Missed
There is a scenario that has begun to repeat itself rather frequently of late. “I need to pick up more heartworm preventive for “Fluffy’. She missed one (or more) months and I need to get her restarted.” To which our staff responds, “I understand, Mrs. Smith. Because Fluffy may have become infected with heartworms during […]
Continue ReadingImmiticide Heartworm Treatment Is Gone
Editor’s Note: As of December, 2011, Immiticide was again available through Merial’s European source. In April, 2011, we reported that Immiticide, the only approved adult heartworm-killing medication in the United States, was in short supply. For months Immiticide has been rationed by the manufacturer, Merial. During this time Merial has found alternative sources for ingredients […]
Continue ReadingDid Fake Heartworm Preventive Cause Suzy To Contract Heartworms?
This is Suzy Q and her owner. Suzy Q has heartworms. As discussed in a first and second post on the topic, we know that dogs who have never been on a heartworm preventive, and dogs who have missed one or more doses of their preventive are at greater risk for developing heartworm disease at […]
Continue ReadingTrifexis Safety
Janet writes with an easy question, “Do you have any information on how well Trifexis works -side effects, effectiveness, etc.?”Janet, our acceptance of Trifexis Heartworm Preventive/flea control was made easy by the fact that it consists of two ingredients with long histories of safety and effectiveness. Milbemycin oxime, the active ingredient in Interceptor Heartworm Preventive, […]
Continue ReadingRay Dillon On Heartworms
Tuesday night was both fun and educational. The monthly meeting of our regional veterinarian’s group, South Mississippi Veterinary Medical Association, met in Biloxi, MS, at Mary Mahoney’s restaurant. The presentation was delivered by my Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine Internal Medicine professor, Dr. Ray Dillon. He is also board-certified by the American College of […]
Continue ReadingTesting Important After Missing Heartworm Preventive
“OK, if it’s important, we’ll go ahead and schedule,” said Griffin’s dad. There are very few things your pet’s doctor will recommend that aren’t “important.” In the present case we were calling our client after failing to obtain a response to two mailed reminders and several phone calls. At Griffin’s last visit, seven months ago, […]
Continue Reading