Canine Flea and Tick Prevention

We all know that fleas and ticks are pests.  Rest assured that there are finally products that work well against these parasites.  We recommend several products that you can choose from depending on your pet’s lifestyle.  All of these products can be used as needed or year-round.  Note that in dogs, tick control is very important in preventing lyme disease and should be used in conjunction with a lyme vaccine.   

Frontline: A one-spot topical skin treatment that lasts for up to one month for ticks and three months for fleas.  Not only does Frontline protect against fleas and ticks but it is also “waterproof”.  In other words, it will stay in the skin even if your pet swims or is bathed.   

Advantix: A once-a-month topical skin treatment that repels and kills mosquitoes, fleas, and ticks.  It is also waterproof but to a slightly lesser extent than Frontline.  It does have the benefit over Frontline in that it repels mosquitoes.

Revolution: This topical medication prevents the mosquito-borne heartworm disease, fleas, and other harmful parasites in dogs.  It is a great choice if ticks are NOT a problem.  If ticks are a problem, Frontline and Advantix are better choices.

Preventic Collars: This collar protects dogs against ticks for up to three months.  The collar should be fitted somewhat snuggly to allow the medication in the collar to be absorbed by the skin.  This should NOT be used in conjunction with another topical tick product and it will lose its efficacy if it gets wet.  It is important to make sure your pet does not ingest this collar.

Advantage:  This one-spot topical skin treatment is great if just fleas are the problem.  It will stay in the skin for up to one month.

Capstar: This is an oral tablet for dogs and puppies 4 weeks of age and older and 2 pounds of body weight or greater.  A single dose of Capstar should kill all the adult fleas on your pet. 

Feline  Flea and Tick Prevention

Revolution:*MVH Doctor Recommended Best Value for Price* This topical medication prevents the mosquito-borne heartworm disease, fleas, ear mites, hookworms and roundworms in cats.

Frontline: A one-spot topical skin treatment that lasts for up to one month for ticks and three months for fleas.  Not only does Frontline protect against fleas and ticks but it is also “waterproof”.  In other words, it will stay in the skin even if your pet swims or is bathed.   

Advantage:  This one-spot topical skin treatment is great if just fleas are the problem.  It will stay in the skin for up to one month.

Canine Heartworm Prevention

Heartworm is potentially fatal in dogs.  It is acquired when mosquitoes carrying the young stage of the heartworm organism, bite and inject the larvae into the dog’s bloodstream.  Once in the dog, the larvae eventually implant in the blood vessels of the lungs and heart and develop into adult worms.  If left untreated, the subsequent inflammation and clogging of the vessels and heart chambers will eventually kill the dog.  Treatment for this disease is potentially dangerous and expensive.  However, prevention is much more affordable and easy.

We recommend using one of the following:

Heartgard Plus: These are beef chews that protect your dog against heartworms and the two parasites that are harmful to people; roundworms, and hookworms.  These flavorful chews are given once per month according to the proper weight range and should be given year-round.

Interceptor: These are flavor tablets that protect your dog or cat against heartworms and three common intestinal worms.   Tabs are given once per month according to the proper weight range and should be given year-round. 

Revolution: This topical one-spot skin medication prevents heartworm in dogs.  It is applied once per month year-round.  It also prevents fleas and other harmful parasites.

Feline Heartworm Prevention

It’s important for owners to realize that cats are also at risk of heartworm.  The disease is potentially more dangerous in cats because it only takes a couple of adult worms to lead to a fatal illness.  There is no safe and effective treatment for heartworm in cats, but there is an affordable and easy way to prevent it. 

We recommend using one of the following:

Revolution: *MVH Doctor Recommended Best Value for Price* This topical medication prevents the mosquito-borne heartworm disease, fleas, ear mites, hookworms and roundworms in cats.

Heartgard: These are beef chews that protect cats against heartworms and hookworms.  These flavorful chews are given once per month according to the proper weight range and should be given year-round.

Interceptor: These are flavor tablets that protect your cat against heartworms and three common intestinal worms.   Tabs are given once per month according to the proper weight range and should be given year-round. 

Feline Parasite Prevention

Whether your cat spends the majority of its time outdoors or napping on the couch, it is susceptible to internal parasites.  These parasites come from your cat swallowing fleas while grooming, ingesting water or soil contaminated with animal feces or worm eggs, eating prey infected with worms, or swallowing worm eggs brought into the home by other pets or on the shoes of people.  These eggs can remain infective for years in the environment and infected pets can transmit internal parasites to you and your family.  In fact, almost 14% of the people in the United States are infected with the dog/cat intestinal "roundworm". 

Depending on your cat's parasite risk we will have recommendations on a preventative treatment for your feline friend.  Next time your cat is in for his/her wellness exam we will discuss one of the following Parasite Risk recommendations.

Low Parasite Risk

1. Based on your cat(s) LOW PARASITE RISK, have us test your cat(s) for internal parasites with a fecal sample at least ONCE per year.  This will check for roundworms, hookworms, coccidia, and giardia.  Tapeworms are not usually seen on fecal samples.

2. Treat your cat(s) with a broad spectrum dewormer (topical Profender) at least ONCE per year.  This will eliminate roundworms, hookworms, and tapeworms from your cat(s).

3. Treat year-round with a preventative heartworm and flea-control product (topical Revolution) monthly for the life of your cat(s).  Revolution treats and controls hookworms and roundworms, prevents and controls fleas/ticks, prevents heartworm infections (acquired through mosquito bites), and treats ear mite infestations.  Revolution is not effective against tapeworms. 

Moderate Parasite Risk

High Parasite Risk

Stool Samples

Dogs, cats, and exotics can harbor a number of intestinal parasites.  The most commonly affected animals are puppies and kittens under 6 months of age.  Adult pets can contract intestinal parasites through fleas and ingestion of contaminated feces, prey, or water.  There are several intestinal parasites that can be transmitted from pets to humans through human/pet contact.  Since humans are not the normal host for these parasites, they can cause numerous problems in our system including blindness and skin disease.  Children and immunocompromised individuals are at the highest risk of contracting these intestinal parasites.  The best way to prevent intestinal parasites is to check stool samples on a regular basis and “deworm” if necessary.  We recommend checking at least two stool samples on puppies and kittens under 6 months of age.  Frequency thereafter is determined by the pet's parasite risk.  We also prophylactically deworm puppies and kittens multiple times to be in compliance with the Companion Animal Parasite Council’s guidelines (www.capcvet.org).  Exotic species (birds, reptiles, rabbits, ferrets, rodents, etc) are no exception.  Fecal checks should be done at least yearly on these individuals as well.

Here is a brief description of the common intestinal parasites with their symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and human transmission.

Roundworms- This is a common worm of puppies and kittens, but can be seen in any age dog or cat.  Diagnosis is made from a microscopic examination of the feces or from a description of the worm if it is seen in the stool or vomit.  Treatment is an oral medication given at 2-week intervals.  Symptoms will vary from none to marked vomiting and diarrhea, and abdominal swelling.  Transmission to adult dogs and cats occurs by infected feces contaminating the yard.  As a result, prevention is accomplished by isolating your pet from infected feces of other animals.  For dogs, the heartworm preventatives also prevent roundworm infection.  Transmission to humans is rare; young children can develop "visceral larval migrans" by eating dirt contaminated with feces.

Hookworms - This is also a common worm of puppies and kittens but is seen with equal frequency in adults.  This parasite sucks your pet's blood and can cause a severe anemia.  Diagnosis is made from a microscopic examination of your pet's stool.  Treatment is either an oral medication or an injection or both.  This is repeated 2 weeks later.  Symptoms will vary from none to blood in the stool (dark tar-colored stool) with diarrhea.  Severe cases may need a transfusion and hospitalization.  Transmission to adults occurs by infected feces contaminating the grass or soil.  Prevention, therefore, requires that the pet be kept away from contaminated areas.  Two types of heartworm preventative can also prevent hookworm infections in dogs.  Transmission to humans is uncommon and usually shows up as skin lesions.