This message has been edited. Last edited by: Kent Stokesberry,

I have seen a hartz product on the shelf that was much cheaper, but I use advantix. I had a buddy with a lab use hartz and his dog got a hot spot on the scruff of the neck. This could have been due to the hartz or due to the swamp water, I am not sure either way!

quote:

Posted Mon November 17 2008 08:42 AM Hide Post
I have seen a hartz product on the shelf that was much cheaper, but I use advantix. I had a buddy with a lab use hartz and his dog got a hot spot on the scruff

I wouldn't touch the Hartz products. There has been major problems with some dogs that had the Hartz flea/tick products applied.

I read something a couple of years ago that said that there is a chemical in the over-the-counter flea/tick products that the dog's body retains forever, and it's not in the products obtained through the veterinary clinics. Consequently I only use Frontline or Advantage.

I have a friend who just did his dogs with Advantix and had a major reaction with one of the dogs in the form of bad hot spots.

Kathy Miller

That is good to know, thank you for the info

I had used Frontline plus. Found a tick on Tanner, gave him a real good bite. The tick got nice and fat, then died. What I have learned is that the tick needs to bite for Frontline plus to work. I think that a dog can get Lyme from this type of situation. So I moved to Advantix. I have never seen a tick on one of my dogs since. And no side effects.

Now me on the other hand. A little over a week ago, I hunted the field behind the house for turkey. I had put 7 to roost just over from the house the night before. I never heard them come off the roost. So I walked up to see if they were still there, it was dark and rainy that morning. I was in the woods for less than 10 minutes. I picked 8 ticks off my shirt and jeans. In 10 minutes they had made it through my rain gear. They are real bad in my area this year. But the dogs have stayed tick free.

Wow, the ticks must have been bad there! I know the were thicker this year than in years past, but they weren't that bad!

Good luck hunting, and try to keep a few pints of blood in ya!

Josh

But, as I recall, the chemical in the Top Spot or Bio Spot remains in the dog in the kidneys or some other gland for the life of the dog, and it does not with the Frontline.

Maybe I'm wrong, but I would opt for the Frontline. I stopped buying the Bio-Spot after I read that.

Kathy

TO ALL, Here is the overview.

Frontline contains Fipronil (as Kent stated). It also contains (S)-Methoprene. This is what Kills the egg/larve.

K9 Advantix contains Imidacloprid. Also Permethrin.

Releve One Spot (Bio-Spot, Top Spot) contain Permrthrin and (S)-Methoprene.

Sergeant's Bansect (Hartz) contain Permethrin.

(I forget what is in Avantage)

What does this mean? Frontline & K9 Advantix are the only truely 'water-proof' treatments. Because Fipronil & Imidacloprid
stay under the skin and 'reapplies' through the oil glands and hair follicles. Permethrin and Pyrethrine (used in older treatments) wash away and are not absorbed. Therefore, if the dog will be in water (almost all our chessies), this will not be effective.

Frontine will not "kill" Ticks, Fleas, mosquitoe, biting flies, etc until they actally bite the dog and ingest the toxin.
K9 Advantix repells and kills just by contact to insect and chemical (dog).

Permethrin based treatments ONLY repell (not kill)!! Plus binding agent in Permethrin only treatments tend to infiltrate
the dogs system, accumulate, and beome toxic over time (as Kathy pointed out).

So what to use? Frontline is good if you have/experience more of a "flea" problem more so than "tick" problem.
K9 Advantx is good if you have more of a "tick" problem more so than a "flea" problem.

For Example. Chelsea was on Frontline in Allentown. Terrible Tick area. Back door was a game preserve. The Frontline did not prevent ticks from biting and thus she acquired Lyme Disease. Prior to moving to Mount Carmel (35 miles from Kevin S),
her Vet switched her to K9 Advantix. As Kevin said, Ticks run-amok here. I live 100 feet from woods edge on a mountain. Chelsea walks on a dirt path in woods (used for ATV's). A half-hour walk caused me to have over a dozen ticks on me alone.
The Advantix works well here. Chelsea had six dead ticks on her coat (and probably more that fell off her).
However, as afomentioned, there is also a MAJOR flea problem here too. The Advantix repells very well, but does not last as long as Frontline will. Usally a K9 Advantix treattment only lasts 15days (compared to a full 30 days with Frontline).
Only get a half-months protection per treatment (cannot reapply for 30 days) so there is a big laps in coverage for Fleas.
However, Tick protection seems to last the full 30 days. (and Frontline is the opposite - long flea protection, not tick).

So usage depends on what you experience as a bigger problem, tick or flea. Hope this helps. Charlie

Kent,
I don't think you are going to find anything cheaper unless you get the crap at wally world. All the flea and tick products that actually work and have a garentee(sp) are all pretty simular in price. They may have different modes of action but basically do the samething. The flea and tick medications that contain permethrin are toxic to cats so you need to be carefull when applying it to the dog so the cat doesn't come in contact with it until it is dry. (some people maynot like cats and would like this but others do like cats and should be concerned).

I've been a technician far to long and all the clinics I worked at carried Frontline. It has been working great for our clients with only a couple adverse reactions. This year we stopped carring frontline and are now using a product called Vectra 3d which is a new product on the market this year which is simular to Advantix. It kills/repells flea ticks and repells mosquitoes. It will repell mosquitoes longer than advantix since the medication that is used to repell the mosquitos is microencapsulated and lasts longer. This is a product that can only be purchased at a vet clinic and has a 100% return policy. If you don't like it you get your money back. We haven't had any problems with it. We switched because you can buy frontline over the counter and we can't compete with those prices.

As for internal parasites you are using the best product when using interceptor. They have been on the market for a long time and have a good reputation. If your dog comes down with roundworm, hookworms or whipworms as well as heartworm if you purchased this product from your vet the company will reimburse you for the cost of the treatment. Interceptor/Sentinel products are the only products that are licensed to control whipworms. The other products like heartgard are not licensed to state that. There are some cheaper products like tri-heart but they are new products on the market.

Just my 2 cents worth...

Kent, Worms, eh. Well...
I use "Worm Shield" (ivermectin/pyrantel). Heartworms (Diofilaria immitis), control of ascarids (Toxocara canis,Toxocara leonina), hookworms (Ancylostoma aninum, Uncinaria stenocephala, Acylostoma braziliene).
Chewable once-a-month tablets. Guaranteed to kill any internal parasite. (useful when our cbrs eat those extra snacks or
decomposed critters).

Maybe if you let Cain & Rita play in those "cow pies" it will be a natural pesticide - haha! Then LET them sleep in your bed - to protect you from pests too. I can see how long that would last!! tehehe. Charlie

Kent, Forgot about Whipworms. If they are prevalent in your area use the Interceptor. THANKS JoAnn!!! Two Paws Up!!

JoAnn, Thanks on the 'heads-up' on Vectra 3d. The mechanism used to repell mosquitoes is the same as for fleas. IF the
Vectra 3d lasts/works longer, it is definately worth it. (as stated before Advantix works about 15 days for flea control.)
And Frontline is not an option - since a tick must bite to die. Esp since Chelsea already has Lyme Disease, a re-infection
or introduction of Lyme (Borreliosis) can be fatal. She already has kidney and liver damage. The Advantix is great for Ticks but the laps of Flea coverage is disheartening/unsatisfactory. The Vectra 3d might be the answer for her. We buy her
treatments directly from her vet anyway. Thanks Again. Chelsea will appreciate it. Two more Paws Up!! Charlie

Wow, all of you have made me feel very fortunate to live where I do! I don't routinely treat for anything.

We don't have heartworm (too cold at night even in summer), no fleas (too dry), I have never seen a tick on one of my dogs in the 4 years I've lived here (have a seen a total of 3 ticks in that time on grooming clients), really the only parasite we tend to get around here is sucking lice, and I will take those any day over fleas or ticks! Oh, we did have one girl with hydatid tapeworm a couple years ago after eating a wild jackrabbit LOL

We use Interceptor for worm control.

Over 4 years with up to four dogs, I have only had 5 occurences with worms in the stool. And that is in an area heavy with black bunny beans... LOL

We had a very heavy frost today, so I am hoping that ticks will be dead soon.

We use Ivomectin (an oral equine drug) for all worms barring tapes. It doesn't work well for flea and tick prevention.

We use Frontline for ticks...works well.

There is a new monthly tablet out for fleas. Kills them dead in 15 minutes. Comfortis... I haven't heard much on the bad side yet...but it's still new.

We also use the Snake bite vaccine.. for the fanged critters round here.... Now that works well!

Wow -- think I'll just stay up here, since the weather takes care of a lot of the parasites, bugs, snakes, and such! Yes, we do have skeeters & flies in the summers, but no ticks, snakes, heartworm, gators or skunks. It is going to drop to -20 to -30 tonight though.

Karen

Karen, "It is going to drop to -20 to -30 tonight though."

That is why "God" designed Chessies - to cuddle-up with to keep warm. Plus the bonus - they will 'brave' the cold temps outside to catch, kill, and bring back dinner. What more could you ask for?? tehehe.

Now if only you could teach them to cook it...

Yeah, you are lucky to be pest/critter free...but... bet the dogs don't like the nightly 'potty' breaks where everything freezes before it hits the ground. Why a dog sees a Christmas Tree as "indoor plumbing". Best Regards, Charlie

Kevin S,
Well Thought "mother nature" would take care of the tick problem. 3 1/2 inches of snow last night, but...
After cleaning sidewalk, decided to push the leaves in yard (bites, have no trees, just accross street that blow here and woods uphill). Pushing the mushy pile (snow & leaves), discovered alot of 'black specks' under leaves that were moving.
Yes - Ticks!! It is going to be a L-O-N-G winter, UGH!! (noticed a post on RTF from someone in southwestern PA had major tick problems too - over 100 removed after outing at a state park.). Kevin, hope you fare better. Charlie

Spent Saturday in the woods.....

Had turkeys within 75 yards, but they never came into shooting distance..... The govenor gave them a reprieve until spring...

The heavy frost here and snow has most of them nasty little critters pretty well finished.

And the amazing thing... Have not found a tick on a dog since I moved to Advantix...

I AM NOT A VETERINARIAN. But it is my understanding from more than one of them that Frontline Plus is effective against Lyme disease because the disease requires a longer gestation period within the tick after its taken in blood than it takes the tick to die which halts the gestation and infection process. Dunno, just what I've been told by those who should.

In any event, I've had great luck with FP, and can suggest a couple ways of saving some money on it. One is buying at discount on line. And another is to buy the largest size available and either divide it among dogs or freeze unused portions of the large vials for later use.

As for heart and roundworm control, I use the over-the-counter 1% ivermectin Ivomec cattle and swine injectable formula GIVEN ORALLY to the dogs at a dosage that kills roundworms and is appreciably greater than that used for heartworm prevention in Heartgard. As heartworms in our area are now infesting dogs on prescription Heartgard and Intercepter with disconcerting regularity, my Vet has told me it probably wouldn't hurt to lean to the heavy side of the .1cc per 10 pounds of dog we're now using. (Which, I think, is better than twice that in Heartgard.)

The 1% Ivomec (NOT the "Ivomec Plus" version!!!) is apparently a very safe drug for all but herding breeds which should NOT be treated with it.

$30-some worth of Ivomec lasts my usual two or three dogs for a couple or three years.

I think it important to note that we have bloodwork done to check for heartworms during the dogs' yearly check-ups.

And I strongly suggest doing as I did and consulting a trusted veterinarian before following my path.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Rick Hall,

Rick is correct about Ivomec...

I have used the cattle and swine injectable for many years. You can up the dosage, slightly, but really not needed. You can add prpolyene glycol to it for a better taste to.

Make sure not to buy Ivomec PLUS with flukeside... it's deadly to canines.

I now use an Ivomec product made for oral administration in horses, similar product, just tastes better. It's not an over the counter product though.