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Ivermectin for treatment of Heartworms
I know this has been discussed before, but I did not find a definitive answer to my question. I know I will get slammed for this, but I did not have my dog on preventative, as I had others on preventative and they still got heartworms and still died, and he has heartworms. I cannot afford the medication from the vet and was advised from a rescue of an alternative treatment of Ivermectin (Heartguard plus) at a higher than recommended doseage. I did not worry about it at first because I figured that this way he could survive and otherwise it was sure death. Has anyone personally known of a dog cured of heartworms using this agent? I just want to know there could be a positive outcome. I don't want to put him through this unnecessarily and cause him any suffereing if there is really no hope of a cure. Here is what they told me.
Use Heartguard plus, nothing else, no generic. Find the appropriate dose for his weight, but do not purchase that one, go up one step and keep him on that dose for one year. So he weighed in at 17# and I got the one for 26-51#. I gave him one dose and I saw a slight improvement I thought, but did not last long. After 2 weeks he was not eating and having labored breathing and just plain looked sad. I called the rescue again and was told to give him 1/2 dose that day and in 2 weeks on schedule give him the other 1/2 dose. So I did this and he perked up in 3 hours. He is now eating and playing and wagging his tail. So here is my question. I am trying to research this on the internet and every article states this will not kill the adult worms. So if we keep them from reproducing what happens to the adult worms. Am I in essence fighting a losing battle? Will they indeed die off as I am being told? If the life cycle is 5-7 years then does he have enough time to let them die off. He is 7.5 years now. He is a dauschund. Does anyone have any personal experience with this form of treatment? Positive or negative. |
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Ivermectin for treatment of Heartworms
sorry, but i am the new chap and I dont have a clue what a heartworm is
and how do dogs get it and how do you know if your dog has it and what can be done to prevent it? sounds scary... Nay Mickee wrote: I know this has been discussed before, but I did not find a definitive answer to my question. I know I will get slammed for this, but I did not have my dog on preventative, as I had others on preventative and they still got heartworms and still died, and he has heartworms. I cannot afford the medication from the vet and was advised from a rescue of an alternative treatment of Ivermectin (Heartguard plus) at a higher than recommended doseage. I did not worry about it at first because I figured that this way he could survive and otherwise it was sure death. Has anyone personally known of a dog cured of heartworms using this agent? I just want to know there could be a positive outcome. I don't want to put him through this unnecessarily and cause him any suffereing if there is really no hope of a cure. Here is what they told me. Use Heartguard plus, nothing else, no generic. Find the appropriate dose for his weight, but do not purchase that one, go up one step and keep him on that dose for one year. So he weighed in at 17# and I got the one for 26-51#. I gave him one dose and I saw a slight improvement I thought, but did not last long. After 2 weeks he was not eating and having labored breathing and just plain looked sad. I called the rescue again and was told to give him 1/2 dose that day and in 2 weeks on schedule give him the other 1/2 dose. So I did this and he perked up in 3 hours. He is now eating and playing and wagging his tail. So here is my question. I am trying to research this on the internet and every article states this will not kill the adult worms. So if we keep them from reproducing what happens to the adult worms. Am I in essence fighting a losing battle? Will they indeed die off as I am being told? If the life cycle is 5-7 years then does he have enough time to let them die off. He is 7.5 years now. He is a dauschund. Does anyone have any personal experience with this form of treatment? Positive or negative. -- Mickee |
#3
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Ivermectin for treatment of Heartworms
"nay" said in rec.pets.dogs.health:
sorry, but i am the new chap and I dont have a clue what a heartworm is and how do dogs get it and how do you know if your dog has it and what can be done to prevent it? The first hit on a google search: http://www.heartwormsociety.org/heart.htm -- --Matt. Rocky's a Dog. |
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Well I will try to answer you Nay. Heartworms are bad, no awful. They get it from a mosquito bite. It is tested by a blood test. You can give them preventative all their life to hopefully prevent it. I personally had 2 dogs die from it and had them on preventative their entire lives, so I did not have faith in the preventative and did not do it with this dog.
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#5
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Matt:
I read the article, but still am not sure I am doing the right thing. I mean the article did not really confirm the preventative will work to treat the worms. I am giving it at a higher than normal dose and that concerns me a bit. So what I wanted to know is if anyone here "personally" did this type of treatment and successfully won the battle over heartworms. My doggie seems better than he has in a while and I tend to think it is working, but am told we cannot really tell for several months and he has only had 1.5 doses of medication. Any help is appreciated. Mickee |
#6
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Ivermectin for treatment of Heartworms
on Thu, 28 Dec 2006 20:49:06 GMT, Mickee
wrote: Well I will try to answer you Nay. Heartworms are bad, no awful. They get it from a mosquito bite. It is tested by a blood test. You can give them preventative all their life to hopefully prevent it. I personally had 2 dogs die from it and had them on preventative their entire lives, so I did not have faith in the preventative and did not do it with this dog. Did the dogs get heartworm at or around the same time? Were they using the same batch of preventative? What preventative were you using? Was it the proper dose and within its expiration date? Did your vet report the failure of the preventative to the manufacturer? -- Lynne http://picasaweb.google.com/what.the.hell.is.it/ |
#7
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Ivermectin for treatment of Heartworms
Did the dogs get heartworm at or around the same time? Were they using
the same batch of preventative? What preventative were you using? Was it the proper dose and within its expiration date? Did your vet report the failure of the preventative to the manufacturer? I'd also be interested in this info as well: Brand Where product was bought expiration date dose and weight of dogs |
#8
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Well this has been like 10 and 15 years ago. They died like at least 5 years apart and were not using the same medication as one was a Pom and the other a chow/lab. Obviously a little difference in size, thus different meds too. All I remember about the package was it was blue with little heart stickers for each month and they were not chewable pills. I did purchase them from the vet. Like I said it has been many years ago I have no idea the expiration date, dose or any of that information now. As far as the vet reporting it, I doubt that very seriously.
Brand Where product was bought expiration date dose and weight of dogs[/quote] |
#9
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Ivermectin for treatment of Heartworms
on Fri, 29 Dec 2006 06:30:21 GMT, Mickee
wrote: Well this has been like 10 and 15 years ago. They died like at least 5 years apart and were not using the same medication as one was a Pom and the other a chow/lab. Obviously a little difference in size, thus different meds too. All I remember about the package was it was blue with little heart stickers for each month and they were not chewable pills. I did purchase them from the vet. Like I said it has been many years ago I have no idea the expiration date, dose or any of that information now. As far as the vet reporting it, I doubt that very seriously. There are, frighteningly, documented cases of failure of heartworm preventatives. The vast majority of those cases aren't well qualified for owner compliance in proper dosing, etc, but a significant number of them are. It's really quite scary, but not enough to make me risk not giving preventatives at all. I expect that as these things are studied, certain factors will come into play such as drug interactions, geographic locations, and perhaps even dog breeds or dietary factors. Or it might even turn out to be shitty quality control by the manufacturers. The FDA is keeping records and I think it's crucial in order to determine when and why heartworm preventatives fail. I wish I could help you with your original question. Were I in your situation, I would take on a second job or borrow money to get the treatment that is proven to work for a heartworm positive dog. I wouldn't risk trying what you are doing. I'm not trying to be snarky or judgemental, just saying what I would do. -- Lynne http://picasaweb.google.com/what.the.hell.is.it/ |
#10
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Ivermectin for treatment of Heartworms
You are delving into "No Mans Land" here ...
Are you absolutely, positively certain the dog has a mature heartworm infestation? This is Critical. C-R-I-T-I-C-A-L! Consider getting a second opinion on the heartworm infestation if there is the slightest doubt. If the diagnosis is certain, consider getting a pre-treatment physical before -any- treatment. The treatments involve administering poisonous chemicals in very, very tightly controlled dosages and administration circumstances. You've perhaps read at: http://placervillevet.com/canine%20heartworm.htm ?? It indicates that treatment for a small dog is around $700. If all indications are for treatment, I'd recommend trying to find the $. Your vet might allow installment payments? My vet wouldn't prescribe Heartgard (Ivermectin) without a heartworm test, said it could kill the dog. Others might be able to reflect on whether this was just to get the $50+ for the test. Good Luck, Puddin' On Thu, 28 Dec 2006 06:04:29 +0000, Mickee wrote: I know this has been discussed before, but I did not find a definitive answer to my question. I know I will get slammed for this, but I did not have my dog on preventative, as I had others on preventative and they still got heartworms and still died, and he has heartworms. I cannot afford the medication from the vet and was advised from a rescue of an alternative treatment of Ivermectin (Heartguard plus) at a higher than recommended doseage. I did not worry about it at first because I figured that this way he could survive and otherwise it was sure death. Has anyone personally known of a dog cured of heartworms using this agent? I just want to know there could be a positive outcome. I don't want to put him through this unnecessarily and cause him any suffereing if there is really no hope of a cure. Here is what they told me. Use Heartguard plus, nothing else, no generic. Find the appropriate dose for his weight, but do not purchase that one, go up one step and keep him on that dose for one year. So he weighed in at 17# and I got the one for 26-51#. I gave him one dose and I saw a slight improvement I thought, but did not last long. After 2 weeks he was not eating and having labored breathing and just plain looked sad. I called the rescue again and was told to give him 1/2 dose that day and in 2 weeks on schedule give him the other 1/2 dose. So I did this and he perked up in 3 hours. He is now eating and playing and wagging his tail. So here is my question. I am trying to research this on the internet and every article states this will not kill the adult worms. So if we keep them from reproducing what happens to the adult worms. Am I in essence fighting a losing battle? Will they indeed die off as I am being told? If the life cycle is 5-7 years then does he have enough time to let them die off. He is 7.5 years now. He is a dauschund. Does anyone have any personal experience with this form of treatment? Positive or negative. Pease pudding hot, Pease pudding cold, Pease pudding in the pot Nine days old ... |
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