Making Sense of Flea, Tick, and Heartworm Prevention

Small Pests, Big Problems.

As the weather starts to warm, the bugs begin to swarm; and we are reminded of a very important step in our pet care….flea, tick, and heartworm preventions! There are tons of options and even more information (not all accurate), so let us try to clarify.

First let’s discuss the issues we see from these pests. Of course, fleas and ticks give us the heebie-jeebies, but they can also do some major damage to our pets. Fleas cause intense itching which results in skin irritation and infections AND they pass tapeworms to our pets! Ticks pass along several disease depending on the species but most notable are Lyme disease and a group of parasites that cause low red blood cells and fevers. The bite of certain ticks can even cause paralysis!! Lastly, our heartworms, which are exactly what their name states- little worms that live in the heart. These guys are passed along in their larval (baby worm) stage by mosquito bites. The larvae then swim through the blood to the heart where they grow and reproduce. Heartworm disease can be fatal, is very difficult on the pet to treat, and is often very expensive. Another important point is that prevention for heartworm disease works on the stage that exists in the pet’s body about 2 months after a bite. Therefore, it is very important NOT to stop heartworm prevention in the winter months!

What can we do to avoid all this? Prevention!

Historically we used to prevent fleas and ticks with topical oils between the shoulder blades and prevent heartworm separately with an oral chewable tablet.  Over the past several years, more oral options for flea and tick preventions were developed and over the past few years these have been able to be combined with our heartworm prevention in a convenient once monthly chew.  Additionally, there is an injectable heartworm prevention that can be given every 6 months or 1 year depending on dosing. Most recently, a similar 1 yr flea and tick preventative injection has been developed and is being used successfully but should not be confused with the Lyme vaccine.

What is right for your pet?

There are pluses and minuses to all prevention types. Maybe your dog has a food allergy or sensitivity so picking all topical or injectable options is important. Maybe your dog eats things he shouldn’t on walks so oral prevention is better for the additional intestinal parasite prevention support. Maybe there is just too much going on to remember to give a monthly preventative and then absolutely our injections are the right choice! Most important is providing the protection and the staff and doctors at True.Vet are happy to help you pick what is best for your specific situation. In clinic, we have Creedlio Quattro as an oral option to protect against fleas, ticks, heartworms, and some intestinal parasites. We also have Bravecto as an oral flea and tick prevention and Pro-Heart as an injectable heartworm prevention. We are happy to provide numerous alternatives to fit your family best through our online pharmacy.

What about our feline friends?

Can our cats even get heartworm? Yes! And unfortunately, in our cats it is not treatable! Additionally, heartworm disease does not just affect cats that go outside, with about 25% of all heartworm positive cats being strictly indoor cats. Those pesky mosquitos do unfortunately get inside and find them. Fleas and ticks also affect cats and will often hitch a ride on people or other household pets that do go outside to get in to them.  There aren’t as many current treatment options for our kitties, but Revolution Plus is a monthly topical that we recommend for all cats to protect against fleas, ticks, and heartworms.  When selecting a product for your cat, please use extreme caution not to use a topical dog product by accident as these can be very toxic to cats. Furthermore, if you have both cats and dogs in the house and are using topical products on your dog, it is recommended that you separate them for about 24hrs.

Hopefully this cleared up some confusion. However, if it created more questions for you, please remember that the staff at True.Vet is here to help along every step of the way and are always just a call, app message, or visit (including telemed) away! And while you’re at it, feel free to ask about True Care Club which offers discounts on all in hospital purchases of flea, tick, and heartworm products!