# tick prevention?



## bigpoodleperson (Jul 14, 2009)

Unfortunately there is currently no heartworm, flea and tick all in one product on the market. Sentinal is a great product, and I have used it in the past. For us here though, ticks are a much bigger problem than fleas. I use Bravecto for us. It is an oral tablet for fleas and ticks that lasts for 12 weeks. It starts killing within 2 hours! I absolutely love it, and most of our clients dogs are now on it with very few reactions (vomiting being the most common but still rare). I use heartgard monthly for heartworms.


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## Coldbrew (Jun 17, 2015)

ahh, i was afraid that my fruitless internet searches for a three-in-one was a sign that there was no such thing on the market. darn! :argh:

i was using heartgard initially, which i purchased from the vet each month for $45 a pill. that seemed like a crazy amount to me ($1000+ a year for just heart worm prevention!) and sentinel spectrum was what i found to be the best, more affordable, alternative (less than $150 a year for fleas and heartworm). 

Looking online, i've found heartgard for much less than what the vet was charging us, so I'm thinking of switching back to that and then just using a flea and tick preventative. I'll have to look into Bravecto - thanks!


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

This has gotten very complicated hasn't it? Between different delivery systems, coverage of different combinations of targets, resistance, etc.

We use Advantix II and Iverhart.


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## lisasgirl (May 27, 2010)

We use Heartgard for worms and heartworm and Nexgard for fleas and ticks. Both are the type where it tastes like a treat and the dogs just ingest it, rather than the topical kind.

My vet is a major fan of Nexgard - apparently it's not only super effective against fleas (a must for us because our cat is allergic), but it takes care of ticks AND it kills dermodex mites. She was very excited about that - the only dermodex remedy she had before this took months to work.

I can say that Archie hasn't had a single flea on him since we started using it last summer, and we have year-round fleas around here. But who knows.


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## MiniPoo (Mar 6, 2014)

I use Heartguard for all 3 of my dogs which I get from my vets. I priced it out once and our vet's price was close to the online price. Plus if I get 12 doses, I get a rebate from the company in the mail. I think it was around a $12 rebate.

I think some vets up their prices a lot, and others like mine (Curtis Rd Vet) up them enough to make a profit but not a lot. If I found the prices different too much, I would order online as well.

My 2 older dogs don't get out as much a Dakota, my 1 yo mini poodle. So I do not use any flea/tick on them. I used Nexgard on Dakota last fall and will start that up sometime this week. I do not like using a product that can produce seizures, but I believe I will continue with it for a while and see how it goes.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

MiniPoo having Dakota well protected as your out and about dog puts a barrier between fleas and ticks and Neeka and Phoenix.


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## Tiny Poodles (Jun 20, 2013)

lily cd re said:


> MiniPoo having Dakota well protected as your out and about dog puts a barrier between fleas and ticks and Neeka and Phoenix.



I do the same with Teaka and Timi.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Tiny Poodles said:


> I do the same with Teaka and Timi.



Yes, most definitely.


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## hkb (Oct 12, 2014)

Smudge gets a yearly heartworm injection, and I have just moved to the Bravecto (he just had his second one) - I like not having to put the liquid anti flea on the back of his neck - it smelt horrible. I don't really have ticks in my area, it was the 3 month protection on the fleas that really appealed to me.


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## Tiny Poodles (Jun 20, 2013)

hkb said:


> Smudge gets a yearly heartworm injection, and I have just moved to the Bravecto (he just had his second one) - I like not having to put the liquid anti flea on the back of his neck - it smelt horrible. I don't really have ticks in my area, it was the 3 month protection on the fleas that really appealed to me.



A yearly heartworm injection? Never heard of that.


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## JudyD (Feb 3, 2013)

My vet no longer carries Heartgard, uses Sentinal instead, so last year we used that and Bravecto. Three or four months ago, Blue was reluctant to take the Sentinal. I had to break it into pieces and push it down his throat. The next month was the same, so I ordered Heartgard online. He's wolfing it down. I'll use the Sentinal for Jazz until it's gone, then put them both on Heartgard and continue Bravecto.


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## hkb (Oct 12, 2014)

Tiny Poodles said:


> A yearly heartworm injection? Never heard of that.


It's available in Australia : Heartworm prevention - general info


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## bigpoodleperson (Jul 14, 2009)

> i was using heartgard initially, which i purchased from the vet each month for $45 a pill


Are you frickin kidding me?! That is almost criminal how much of a mark up they are doing on the product if that is really correct! For the large size I think we sell it somewhere around 9$ a pill.


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## Tiny Poodles (Jun 20, 2013)

Just a heads-up for those of you have health insurance - I noticed somebody complaining to Petplan that they would not cover their dog's Lyme Disease because they could not provide receipts to prove that they hey had given the preventative.
So if you don't buy from the vet, hold onto those receipts!


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## seminolewind (Mar 11, 2016)

Revolution doesn't cover all that?


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## Coldbrew (Jun 17, 2015)

seminolewind, Revolution doesn't cover ticks - so it's in the same category as Sentinel Spectrum is: everything but ticks.

thank you all for your feedback! We will probably switch back to hartguard for this month, and probably start up bravecto after one final check with the vet!


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## SusanG (Aug 8, 2009)

I give my girls Heartgard from May through Nov and they get blood tested once a year. For flea/tick, Molly gets Frontline and Callie gets Advantix (each had a reaction to the other one). I only use them April - Nov and try to go up to 6 weeks per each application, I make up an essential oil repellant spray for their legs, bellies and ears when they go out. It worked well last year. Molly had only one tick and Callie had none.
I don't like using any chemical, but with the ticks so bad, its hard to get around it. I can see ticks on Callie right away, but they blend into Molly's coloring. I don't want to take a chance and find one the next day when its already dug in. Ticks are really gross, and Lyme Disease is very common in upstate NY.


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## Tiny Poodles (Jun 20, 2013)

I will never put any topical preventative on Timi -my previous poodles got all kinds of skin problems from the topical things.
I just don't know what I am going to do when I get one under four pounds though - nexgard only goes down to four pounds...


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## Charmed (Aug 4, 2014)

Revolution does cover the American dog tick; it is specifically listed on the box.


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## Shamrockmommy (Aug 16, 2013)

Last year I used Sentinel for heartworm/fleas and Seresto for fleas/ticks.

This year am trying out Sentinel again, and Preventic collar on Echo (PWD). Jack reacts to all the topicals I've tried so far (screams, skin crawls and twitches for days after I wash it off), and Cookie (3.5lb chihuahua) is so small my vet has forbidden any topical anything.

I did get a "small dog" flea and tick spray to put on the littles for when we go on walks, or when I let them have the full run of the property (3.5 fenced acres) but that includes woods and brush, where ticks love to hide. 

We also started treating the property the first year we got here (3 yrs ago) with Deltaguard (granular permethrin) and that cut down the number of ticks drastically! We would find 5-7 ticks a day on each dog the first year! It was crazy. 

Hoping the preventic works. And the spray on the littles!


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## JudyD (Feb 3, 2013)

Charmed said:


> Revolution does cover the American dog tick; it is specifically listed on the box.


I don't think it covers the deer tick, which transmits Lyme disease. There's a plague of deer around here, and our area has just been declared endemic for Lyme, so we must have coverage for deer ticks.


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## Shamrockmommy (Aug 16, 2013)

No surprise that W.Va is now considered endemic! Same here for NoVA, and all the neighbors have it, and pretty much anyone you talk to either has it or has a family member with it. Bad stuff. 

Tested out the Preventic collar (Echo) and the small dog flea/tick spray (Jack). NO ticks found on them. Jack and Echo spent the entire day outside helping DH and I clear brush from the woods, and burn some of it. They ran and ran and dug holes and ran some more and got all tangled with brush and dirt everywhere. They had a great time. I purposefully did not shoo or call them out of the wooded areas, to see how the products would hold up.

Full bath and blow dry (so I can see every inch of skin) revealed not one tick! 

So far so good!

HOWEVER, this is after 3 years of tick treatments, using Damminix Tick Tubes (home made) and Deltaguard granules.

Doing that has helped cut down the ticks around here drastically, which is nice!


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## seminolewind (Mar 11, 2016)

I used to use this monthly dip. It smelled like pepper. But I lived in Suffolk County where we had more than a lot. They are usually impossible to see. I had found 2 on me within a few years quite by accident. Both were found on my arm. I thought it was a speck of dirt. Down here in Florida I have yet to see one.


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## JudyD (Feb 3, 2013)

seminolewind said:


> I used to use this monthly dip. It smelled like pepper. But I lived in Suffolk County where we had more than a lot. They are usually impossible to see. I had found 2 on me within a few years quite by accident. Both were found on my arm. I thought it was a speck of dirt. Down here in Florida I have yet to see one.


The deer ticks are tiny, tiny, tiny little devils, exactly like specks of dirt. Don't know how you'd even find them in a dog's coat. I've never seen one attached and engorged--maybe they're easier to see, but by then it might be too late.


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## SusanG (Aug 8, 2009)

The ticks are really really small (some the size of a pencil point) The wood ticks are larger and don't carry Lyme, but could carry other disease, but usually not. (If you find one on your dog, try to get the whole thing out, including the head and put it in a jar and take to the vet. I brought the one I pulled off Molly to the vet and he looked at it under a magnifying glass to determine it was a deer tick.)
Unfortunately, the only way to find a deer tick on a dark coat is after it attaches and starts to enlarge (ugh). Supposedly, there is a "grace" period, if you get them before 24 hours, they have not injected their poison yet. But, when we find one attached we always take them to the vet and start them on an antibiotic right away. For people its a big dose of tetracycline one time if you catch it early. 
I go over each dog, feeling their body all over, especially belly, between legs and top of head, to find any "lumps" that might be ticks. The shot, although they say it prevents some infection, is not 100%
Ticks are the worst thing about summer because all the lovely places to be are woods and fields and trails - and that is where they are!


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## seminolewind (Mar 11, 2016)

You can add me to that sticker shock list when I saw how expensive those pills from the vet would be. Someone here recommended pet-megastore and I got Sentinel there, and the other all in one.

Does everyone use heartworm prevention?


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## seminolewind (Mar 11, 2016)

Years ago on LINY I actually found 2 on me. One time thinking I was scratching a speck of dirt, and the other under my watch during a lecture,Lol. Then, I was a NICU nurse for many years and one time I'm examining a baby and happened to see a deer tick on a baby! And the result from the lab came back as deer tick and it turns out that the family had gone go the beach prior to visiting the baby!

I would never be able to find one on a dog. I used to get an annual titer for lyme's on my dog.


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## SusanG (Aug 8, 2009)

I use Heartgard but not year around. It makes no sense to me to give it to my girls in the middle of winter. Since the prevention treats exposure from the month before, I start in May (since April there are some mosquitos) and end in Nov or Dec, depending on how warm and dry October has been. They don't stay out for extended periods of time, and I use an essential oil repellent spray also.
I generally buy my Frontline, Advantix and Heartgard on line, PetEdge, Chewy or Drs Foster, depending on who has the best deal and get a 6 month supply. The vet is too expensive on OTC drugs. I once paid $35 for probiotics at the vet, and bought the same on line for half that price for twice the amount.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

seminolewind said:


> Years ago on LINY I actually found 2 on me. One time thinking I was scratching a speck of dirt, and the other under my watch during a lecture,Lol. Then, I was a NICU nurse for many years and one time I'm examining a baby and happened to see a deer tick on a baby! And the result from the lab came back as deer tick and it turns out that the family had gone go the beach prior to visiting the baby!
> 
> I would never be able to find one on a dog. I used to get an annual titer for lyme's on my dog.


Last year I picked up a tick at an agility trial in Yaphank. I didn't realize it was there until I felt itchy and when I reached around to scratch my back I felt what seemed like a skin tag (which I don't have). My across the hall office neighbor who has a weekend place in Mattituck was able to pull it out in one fell swoop.


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## JudyD (Feb 3, 2013)

I listened to a presentation on Vetvine, by a vet/parasitologist about fleas and ticks. If I understood correctly, deer ticks are most active during the winter months. The vet's advice, strongly worded, was to continue flea and tick meds year round. I haven't been doing that, but I may change my ways.

Here's a link to the info. Not sure it will work--I had to join the site, which wasn't easy to do--so nonmembers may not be able to get on. Worth a try, though.

http://vetvine.com/article/302/flea...ail&utm_term=0_fee2abc0cf-31b0727b13-60745629


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## SusanG (Aug 8, 2009)

Ticks are gross. Even in mid winter, it only takes one warmer day above freezing and they come out. I never ever go in the woods behind our house (or let the dogs go there) but once, last January I walked back about 100 yards to look at a tree. The next day I had a tick embedded under my arm. Out comes the tetracycline we keep for just such emergencies! We travel with it. Disgusting things. Haven't been back there since.


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## seminolewind (Mar 11, 2016)

seminolewind said:


> You can add me to that sticker shock list when I saw how expensive those pills from the vet would be. Someone here recommended pet-megastore and I got Sentinel there, and the other all in one.
> 
> Does everyone use heartworm prevention?





lily cd re said:


> Last year I picked up a tick at an agility trial in Yaphank. I didn't realize it was there until I felt itchy and when I reached around to scratch my back I felt what seemed like a skin tag (which I don't have). My across the hall office neighbor who has a weekend place in Mattituck was able to pull it out in one fell swoop.


I lived in Ridge for 25 years. That whole area was bad. For deer ticks as well. Speaking of Mattituck, my horse and dog vet was in Laurel which is right next door.


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## seminolewind (Mar 11, 2016)

I was recently chatting with someone who said I'm wrong for not wanting to follow my vet's advice and give that monthly pill for hr, worms, and fleas, and instead listening to an acquaintance about buying my own. She said I would kill my puppy if I gave HW preventative before a blood test. And if I spend the money on poodle grooming, I shouldn't complain about the HW med from the vet for $200 a year or more. 

I told her my puppy just came from Syracuse and 3 days later the vet gave me a free dose and said he will test for HW next month. So I seriously doubt that she has HW.

I guess I'm not the only one that avoids the vet mark up?


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## Minnie (Apr 25, 2011)

We live in a heavily impacted tick area and our house is in the country with deer often in our yard. However, as Bella is quite small (4 pounds) I am quite nervous using any of the available tick preventatives. We currently use Sentinel year round for flea / heartworm. Any suggestion for a tick preventative for a tiny one would be appreciated.

(Last year we used a very small dose of Frontline topical per vets advise along with Sentinel).


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## Tiny Poodles (Jun 20, 2013)

seminolewind said:


> I was recently chatting with someone who said I'm wrong for not wanting to follow my vet's advice and give that monthly pill for hr, worms, and fleas, and instead listening to an acquaintance about buying my own. She said I would kill my puppy if I gave HW preventative before a blood test. And if I spend the money on poodle grooming, I shouldn't complain about the HW med from the vet for $200 a year or more.
> 
> I told her my puppy just came from Syracuse and 3 days later the vet gave me a free dose and said he will test for HW next month. So I seriously doubt that she has HW.
> 
> I guess I'm not the only one that avoids the vet mark up?



When I got Timi, my Vet told me that as long as you begin heartworm meds by six months old there is no need to do the blood test. I will do the blood test soon because I did not give her any meds over the winter.
Also, you know it is perfectly fine, according to the life cycle of heart worms to not begin until six weeks after it has been consistently warm enough for mosquitos to live, and to only give it every six weeks.
Following that protocol, I really don't give that much, so I go ahead and buy it from my Vet and then I don't have to worry about it being counterfeit or whatever...
Read this! http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/heartworm-medication-part-2/

Besides what's really expensive is the Nexgard, and when I have looked that up online, it really was only a few bucks less than the vet - really not worth the trouble of getting a prescription faxed etc.


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## Deblakeside (Oct 2, 2015)

I am also looking for deer tick prevention for a small dog (under 5 lbs). My vet put him on Revolution, but it only kills dog ticks. I've already pulled 3 off Billy this month! Abad result of a mild winter! And I have been bitten twice in the past three years. And having already experienced Lyme, I want to avoid it at all costs! I am treating the yard tomorrow, but would really like advice on a preventive for Billy.:afraid:


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## Tiny Poodles (Jun 20, 2013)

Deblakeside said:


> I am also looking for deer tick prevention for a small dog (under 5 lbs). My vet put him on Revolution, but it only kills dog ticks. I've already pulled 3 off Billy this month! Abad result of a mild winter! And I have been bitten twice in the past three years. And having already experienced Lyme, I want to avoid it at all costs! I am treating the yard tomorrow, but would really like advice on a preventive for Billy.:afraid:



Nexgard does, and goes down to four pounds.


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## FireStorm (Nov 9, 2013)

seminolewind said:


> I was recently chatting with someone who said I'm wrong for not wanting to follow my vet's advice and give that monthly pill for hr, worms, and fleas, and instead listening to an acquaintance about buying my own. She said I would kill my puppy if I gave HW preventative before a blood test. And if I spend the money on poodle grooming, I shouldn't complain about the HW med from the vet for $200 a year or more.
> 
> I told her my puppy just came from Syracuse and 3 days later the vet gave me a free dose and said he will test for HW next month. So I seriously doubt that she has HW.
> 
> I guess I'm not the only one that avoids the vet mark up?


I'm curious - where do you get your HW meds if not from the vet? Does your vet have to give you a prescription? My vet's markup isn't that bad for the Trifexis that I give Hans, but maybe it varies by vet. My equine vet will order it for me at her cost so I have a fairly good idea of what the vet pays, but I usually just get it from the vet that Hans sees because it's easy to just grab it when he's there for his checkup. We do an annual blood test for heartworm too, just to be safe.


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## JudyD (Feb 3, 2013)

I use 1800PetMeds to order Heartgard and Bravecto. Blue refuses Sentinel but will take Heartgard, but my vet's office doesn't carry Heartgard. The vet's receptionist is the one who gave me PetMeds' number, so I could order it online. I prefer to buy from my vet when possible, but when I discovered Bravecto is considerably cheaper through PetMeds (something like $65/pill versus $44/pill), I confess economics trumped loyalty. I've ordered it online too. PetMeds calls the vet to get the order, then ships it to me.


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## FireStorm (Nov 9, 2013)

Judy, thanks for the info. I never knew how the online ordering worked. If it was that much of a savings, I'd order elsewhere too! My savings if I get Trifexis from the equine vet vs my small animal vet is only about $10 for a six month supply, so it's not a big deal either way for me. The Trifexis doesn't do ticks, but we really don't seem to have a problem with them surprisingly so I don't worry about it.


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## JudyD (Feb 3, 2013)

If the savings were minimal, I'd eat the difference, but considering I have to have eight Bravectos a year, it really does add up. Additionally, it's about an hour and a half round trip to the vet's office, so time is a factor, too.


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## Coldbrew (Jun 17, 2015)

i also use 1800-pet meds, and have placed an order for heartgard and bravecto for the dogs. the vet's office actually just called me a few hours ago because i'd "ordered the wrong size" for my dogs. I did order the right size - and i knew i had - so i asked to speak to the vet. 

I had to explain that even though Jasper weighs 24 pounds according to their records, he has actually gotten larger since they saw him at 16 weeks :eyeroll: and is now 50+ pounds. The vet even said "oh duh" out loud, since she'd been the one to have the receptionist call and let me know i'd gotten the wrong size :alberteinstein:

i'm going to look into the lyme vaccine, but i'm doubtful i'll need it here even if the bravecto doesn't cover deer ticks. i've got the dogs in short enough clips that i can check them for ticks easily. 

thanks all for your feedback!


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## bigpoodleperson (Jul 14, 2009)

> but i'm doubtful i'll need it here even if the bravecto doesn't cover deer ticks


Just FYI, the bravecto does cover against deer ticks.  The black legged tick (Ixodes scapularis) is the deer tick. 

INDICATIONS: Bravecto kills adult fleas and is indicated for the treatment and prevention of flea infestations (Ctenocephalides felis) and the treatment and control of tick infestations [Ixodes scapularis (black-legged tick), Dermacentor variabilis (American dog tick), and Rhipicephalus sanguineus (brown dog tick)] for 12 weeks in dogs and puppies 6 months of age and older, and weighing 4.4 pounds or greater.


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## Coldbrew (Jun 17, 2015)

bigpoodleperson said:


> Just FYI, the bravecto does cover against deer ticks.  The black legged tick (Ixodes scapularis) is the deer tick.


that's perfect! 
thank you for letting me know - I'd have been checking extra well for no real reason!


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