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I just was reading through the thread on 1-800-PETMEDS, and I was happy to see that what I pay at the vet is similar to those online prices. But I've been wondering if anyone uses half doses to save money. My dog's weight bounces between 10 1/2 and 11 pounds. The meds she takes (was HeartGuard in the past, just switched to Trifexis) is for 10 to 20 pound dogs. So it seems that my dog could probably get by with half a dose each month.
I've used half doses of the flea & tick liquid that gets squirted on her back, because the full dose made her lethargic. I haven't yet tried breaking the oral meds in half. Anyone tried this?
I know you can't do it with heartgard because the medicine isn't distributed evenly throughout the chew. Since Trifexis is also a chewable, I think it would probably be the same. I feel your pain about the cost of the medicine, but heartworm isn't worth the risk.
Read the ingredients in Heart Guard it has poision in it. For fleas and ticks, I cut a piece of garlic and hide it in liverwurst at least 2x a month. No flea or tick problem. BUT don't forget to give them an IRON pill at the same time because garlic depletes their iron.
For worms I give them 1x a month cayenne pills. Keeps the blood clean. I always give Fish oil capsule with these pills, to coat the stomach lining so that the strenght of the garlic or caynne does not hurt their stomach lining. Hiding the pills in liverwurst is excellent because they love liverwurst and it is a treat, as it completely hides the smell of the pills and garlic.
My dogs are a 100lb Pit and a 110lb Akita so for the size of your pet you want to cut the garlic to the appropriate size....a tiny piece for a smaller dog etc:
For ear problems. Put half a clove of garlic in olive oil. Let it sit in a dark place(sunlight spoils the concotion)......After a day or so remove the garlic. Squirt the oil in the ear and clean the ear with the oil as often as needed. IT WORKS. It is stinky though, for a little bit. It is organic and natural. I stay away from meds as much as possible and use it as a last resort.
you cannot half dose the heartworm pills (any of them) as the medication is not evenly distributed...you could gut a pill in 1/2 and get barely any meds in one 12 and the full dose in the other an would never know...
but you can save by buying the biggest dose of flea topical you can get getting a small syrnge and a blue glas vial and diviing that up into smaller doses
I do that with mine buying the biggest does and dividing it, but if you dont store the letovers correctly (protectedrom the air) it spoils quickly so a glass vial to put the rest into until next time is important.
So far of all my dogs I never had a heartworm disease. BUT, I think it is due to the fact that as soon as I get them from the pound young, I start them off with the garlic and cayenne as part of their routine for the rest of their lives, which has lasted to 9yrs my Rottie, 11/13 my Sheperds. Garlic is an immune booster, whereas cayenne is a blood cleanser. BOTH I imagine kills worms bacteria before they even become worms. I do know this much none of my dogs ever had worms in their stools.
Byron, I sincerely hope your dogs have continued good luck. I'm not sure where you live, but I see the OP lives in Louisiana. In a warm, wet area the risk of heartworm is very high. You can see on this map that parts of Louisiana had 100+ cases of heartworm per *clinic*.
you cannot half dose the heartworm pills (any of them) as the medication is not evenly distributed...you could gut a pill in 1/2 and get barely any meds in one 12 and the full dose in the other an would never know...
but you can save by buying the biggest dose of flea topical you can get getting a small syrnge and a blue glas vial and diviing that up into smaller doses
I do that with mine buying the biggest does and dividing it, but if you dont store the letovers correctly (protectedrom the air) it spoils quickly so a glass vial to put the rest into until next time is important.
Why couldn't you chop it up in tiny pieces, almost pulverized, and then divide that mixture in half? I don't see why that wouldn't work.
I see what you are saying. I am in the greater NY area. We have big tick problems. I try to stay homeopathic as much as possible. My Akita when I first got him from the pound had health issues. Ear infection and mange. I stepped up the garlic and although it helped the mange it did not get the ear infection fast enought for my liking so I got penicillin from the vet while continuing to cleanse the ear with the oil/garlic infusion. The vet is the last resort.
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