Stephen Said:

can a dog overdose on heartworm medicine?

We Answered:

Your dog should be ok. Read the instructions on the box to see if there is any information about overdosing and give your vet a quick call, just in case.

Louise Said:

Can I give my dog heartworm medicine if he is already infected?

We Answered:

The preventative?

I think its a great idea.

Much like using birth control after one is pregnant.

Jerry Said:

Do we really need to give our dogs heartworm medicine?

We Answered:

You do need to give the dog heartworm medicine during the summer months when there are mosquito's. However, if you live in a climate that has winters, and there are clearly no mosquitos, (like where I live, it is all of 5 degrees right now), then you do not need to give the medicine during those times.

Jesse Said:

Is there any over the counter heartworm medicine for dog tha i could get?

We Answered:

The first thing to consider is how long had it been since your dogs have had heart worm prevention. If it is six months or less and has been over winter (or un-mosquito season) then you can use a treatment.

If it is any longer then the dogs must be tested before using these medications. It is very dangerous to treat a dog with adult heart worms.

There are many OTC heart worm medications/preventors - tablets, spot-on treatments and chewy treat type - you can buy these from your vet, pet store and even some supermarkets.

Revolution, Advantage, Sentinal, Iverhart etc are all available OTC

Ruth Said:

will heartworm medicine work for my dog if he might already have it?

We Answered:

How many days have passed since you were to give the medication? I was told once to delay my dog's medication by 5 days due to other health problems. The way some of the medications work is to kill the heartworm at a certain stage of development, prior to them completing a lifecycle, reproducing and forming a tangled mass to damage the heart.

The preventative is occasionally given to dogs with very mild heartworm infestation, however this is done only under vet supervision and in the very earliest stages of the disease.

If you missed a dose, call the vet's office and ask if it is safe to give the medication, or if you need a blood test first. Your vet is the one to make this determination. My vet does not charge for phone calls.

Heartworms will not be excreted in dog feces for the record. The reason the treatments are so dangerous is that the dead worms can clog the heart or travel to the lungs. It is an issue with having blood clots and pulmonary thrombosis.

Marian Said:

If Petco overdosed or could have overdosed your dog on heartworm medicine would you sue?

We Answered:

I would talk to someone Diva, I have a very close relationship with my Vet she is close with the shelter here if you get a dog from the shelter here (this is a small town it only costs $15.00 to adopt one) Dr. Peggy fixes a male for $15.00 she loves the animals and is very kind. Everyone in her office double checks everything. I take Yasha to her for all medicines but she does not do training so I do take her to Petco for training and I had a wonderful experience there. If you look on your receipt there should be a number to call, I have had to call a couple of times because they charged the full price and they told me that I had a 15% credit and it never showed up and they were always very helpful and even gave me an additional 5% credit. Why don't you try calling them. We do not have heart-worm here in Nevada, so I do not have to worry about it, but when I was in Utah I know we had chewable tablets and for my smaller dog my Vet there had me break them in half, is it possible for you to break yours into fourths? I really do understand you concern. When my son was 3 months old the pharmacy gave him medicine that said 1 tsp. every bowl movement and when I gave it to him he turned blue. We rushed him to the hospital it was supposed to say 1mil. every bowl movement. I could have killed him. I was so upset, they have a hard job. I was just so happy that my son was alive and I thank God that he turned blue before I killed him. God works in strange ways. I am glad you caught the mistake and your puppy is alive.