Do you give your dogs Heartguard and Frontline every month? Are they really necessary? How about vitamins? Which brand?

Yes, my dogs get the equivalent of Heartguard and do get Frontline every month. We live in the far South and every month has days warm enough for mosquitos and fleas. If I lived in the Northern states where it gets below freezing for weeks at a time I would probably not use them November through February. Still, it's easier to remember if used every month. And, no, I don't use vitamins. Any dog who is getting a quality food should not need vitamin supplementation.

yes, and its important to keep using frontline consistently if you want to have continuous coverage. I stopped using it for a few months and sure enough the fleas were back.

If you live in an area where heartworms and fleas are even remotely possible, yes, they're necessary. Maybe not necessarily Heartguard and Frontline, but some form of heartworm and flea control.

Heartworms are deadly, and the treatment can be painful and expensive. A few dog's don't survive treatment.

Fleas will make your dog miserable. And they can also give your dog tapeworms.

I do use Heartguard every month. I don't use Frontline, I use Comfortis, which is a once a month pill. And it works VERY well.

I use Tri-Heart Plus for heartworms all year round and Sentry Natural Defense from may-aug. (tick season in my area... never had to deal with fleas on my dogs). Both are great products and I am very happy with them.

Heartguard can be given every 3 months to solely prevent heart worms. However, vets recommend it every month so it can prevent parasites (roundworm, hookworm, tapeworm), as well. The life cycle of a parasite is 28 days, so to make it simple for owners,

If you only use Hearguard every three months to control heartworm, you're pushing your luck. You might get away with every two months, you definitely can get away with every 45 days, but personally, I wouldn't risk it.

Administering once a month gives you a window of opportunity if you forget a dose, and don't remember it until a few days later. Even every two months may give you a few days leeway if you forget. But every 3 months is really risky.

Heartguard will definitely clear any stage of larvae your dog has been exposed to in the last 45 days. It may clear any exposure in the last 63 days. But 90 days is pushing past the limit.

i also give my dogs Heartguard and Frontline treatment because this is necessary

Both of mine get HeartGuard and Frontline Plus every month. Definately gets expensive. Better than getting heartworm and having to deal with fleas. Even with frontline they still will pick up ticks if they go in the woods. I fenced in a large area of the back so I have more control over where they are at any time.
I also tried Premaris but it didn't work much better than frontline {alittle}. It made me uncomfortable to use it so I went back to frontline. I haven't tried Advantage but I know some prefer it. I haven't had one single flea with the frontline.
If you don't want to use something like one of these oral pills then a good flea dip is Adams. Adams flea and tick shampoo is pretty good too.
There also is a one time pill just for de-fleaing but I can't remember the name of it. It doesn't provide continous coverage. Neither does the dips and shampoos.
I live in area with bad heartworm so heartguard is year round.

We had to use frontline for several months at one point, it was really expensive but it did the job.

I am using Frontline for the first time and my puppy still bites and scratches. I have not seen any fleas on him and I likewise have not gotten bitten since my puppy sleeps with me at night, but i'm not sure if I am pleased with the product.

Originally Posted by CATorres

I am using Frontline for the first time and my puppy still bites and scratches. I have not seen any fleas on him and I likewise have not gotten bitten since my puppy sleeps with me at night, but i'm not sure if I am pleased with the product.

What is it you're expecting the Frontline to do? Kill fleas, or relive itching? Sounds to me like it's killing the fleas, which is what it's supposed to do.

There are many reasons a dog will itch. Fleas are a common reason, but so are food allergies, allergies to grass and pollen, and contact allergies from various different products in your home. There's also mites; demodex, sarcoptes, and others. Perhaps you should have your vet check your pup to determine why he's itching.

But he jerks as if he is being bitten. So then he bites at the spot and/or scratches it...so to me it seems as if he is being bitten by fleas. I comb him but do not find anything....

Have you ever had a mosquito bite? Sometimes something will suddenly trigger them to itch, even though the mosquito bit you days ago.

Flea bites are the same way. A flea bite can continue to cause itching for 3 weeks, even though the flea is dead and gone.

hmmm ok never really thought of it that way

I just got Advantage from the Vet, is it the same Advantage that you can buy on the internet, or is it not safe to purchase over the net?

Hi, I never had to give medication for heartworm. I used to use Frontline until I found out how toxic it was to my baby. Then I found a Bontanical Citronella spray. It is not harmful to dogs, but keeps fleas and ticks away. I live in the Southwest where there are ticks, but since I started using the spray, she never got a tick again. You do have to apply it every few days, but the work was worth her health. That, along with regular grooming prevented any problems. Remember that your baby's system has to deal with whatever you put in/on your baby!

according to the frontline plus hotline, ticks will die within 24 hours after attaching. they will fall off on their own.

We have used frontline plus for years as in my neck of the world there are tons of fleas and ticks. Haven't had a problem. I had called the hotline to find out what I should do if a tick was to ever get on a dog. My vet said the same thing. they will die when they bite and fall off.

as far as heartgard. We use those monthly as well as frontline plus. My dogs only get frontline from may to september. then is gets too cold for fleas and ticks in my area.

Never had an animal get sick from frontline. have used advantix and that doesn't work on my animals. used a few other safer items and still no go. Frontline seems to work every time.

to make it a treat for my dogs. we bathe them and then give them their heartgard and they think it is a treat for bathing well. and they gobble it up. Psych LOL.

We do both Heartgaurd and Frontline once a month. Have you ever seen a pic of a heart with heart worms? It is disgusting!! Not to mention it is a long and expensive process to get rid of them, if you can get rid of them.

We have a wood stove so in the winter time we give an extra fish oil pill to help with dry skin.

BTW, some products you buy online that aren't from a vet can be fakes or out of date.

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