# Late on Heartguard by 11 days - how serious?



## no.guru (Apr 9, 2010)

My calendar reminder somehow didn't, and I just gave her Heartguard 11 days later than last month. How serious is this?

She's due to have a second heartworm test in about 2 months, anyway. There's nothing to be done except wait for it, of course.

I'm just wanting a little reassurance. Has anyone else done this?


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## Reiko89 (Jul 2, 2010)

Just give it to the dog, heart worm medicine doesn't "prevent" heartworms from coming in, it actually just kills any worms that the dog may have picked up in the last month, so in THAT way it prevents the worms from growing up in the heart... If you give it now, it will kill what she may have been exposed to in the last 42ish days... I think she'll be fine.


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## no.guru (Apr 9, 2010)

*Prevention*, it says. Heh. I fell for the advertising language. Reiko, thanks for the reply.


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## MissMutt (Aug 8, 2008)

It prevents heartworms by ensuring that the population never gets too large.

11 Days is nothing. You'll be fine. 

(I recently skipped a month of Flea/Tick meds  )


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## ozzy (Sep 29, 2007)

I wouldn't say 11 days is nothing but you probably will be fine. My dog just got diagnosed with HW and I gave it to him faithfully every month within 3 days. The vet thinks it is the overlap that allowed him to get it. It just takes one mosquito bite. Not trying to freak you out but I wish I had known this now that I am facing a lengthy and costly treatment. I am sure your pup is okay though. Just get in him tested in about six months to be sure.


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## no.guru (Apr 9, 2010)

Thank you, everyone, for your comments.

Last month was in fact her first month of Heartguard after having her for the past year. She's largely an indoor dog, although we walk daily. She tested negative, but that was only for adults. I was to take her back in three months to test for juveniles that might become adults.


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## Pai (Apr 23, 2008)

no.guru said:


> She tested negative, but that was only for adults.


That's normal, since monthly heartworm 'prevention' medicine actually kills the baby worm larva (who live in the bloodstream) before they can grow up and move to the heart. It doesn't actually prevent infection.


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## RonE (Feb 3, 2007)

> (I recently skipped a month of Flea/Tick meds )


In fairness, many dogs do just fine without EVER getting flea and tick meds. Not mine - we live in tick country - but if I had to do without something, I'd rather take a chance on fleas or ticks than on heartworm.


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## Pepper (Jan 27, 2008)

RonE said:


> In fairness, many dogs do just fine without EVER getting flea and tick meds. Not mine - we live in tick country - but if I had to do without something, I'd rather take a chance on fleas or ticks than on heartworm.



Yeah I don't think I've ever given my dog that, nor do I know anyone who does...but that's the joys of Fairbanks, Alaska


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## MissMutt (Aug 8, 2008)

> In fairness, many dogs do just fine without EVER getting flea and tick meds.


Many dogs do fine without HW prevention, too; some people who even live in areas where there have been HW cases do not give it because they feel they're giving their dogs chemicals. Really, it was just a comment about how it's OK to mess up your routine a bit every once in a while.


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## DJEtzel (Dec 28, 2009)

I do not agree that it's okay to mess up the routine sometimes. 11 days is a long time, and even with dogs on HW prevention year round, it's been known that they can still get Heartworms. 

So 11 days is a disaster waiting to happen. I've seen many dogs come through the shelter with HW and be treated for it. It's a sad sight.


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## Pai (Apr 23, 2008)

DJEtzel said:


> I do not agree that it's okay to mess up the routine sometimes. 11 days is a long time, and even with dogs on HW prevention year round, it's been known that they can still get Heartworms.
> 
> So 11 days is a disaster waiting to happen. I've seen many dogs come through the shelter with HW and be treated for it. It's a sad sight.


You can wait up to 45 days between HW doses. The only reason they recommend every 30 is because it's easier to remember for most people. 11 days late is not a big deal.


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## ozzy (Sep 29, 2007)

DJEtzel said:


> I do not agree that it's okay to mess up the routine sometimes. 11 days is a long time, and even with dogs on HW prevention year round, it's been known that they can still get Heartworms.
> 
> So 11 days is a disaster waiting to happen. I've seen many dogs come through the shelter with HW and be treated for it. It's a sad sight.


I am just wondering why you say it's a sad sight? I know it's a horrible disease but I thought if caught and treated the outcome can be okay? I don't want to hijack this thread but my dog just got diagnosed with heartworm even though he was on the monthly preventive. Maybe you can reply to my thread here in the health section if you have any tips since you have seen it a lot? I am very worried.


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## Maliraptor (Mar 6, 2009)

This has always confused me. 

You don't need to start a puppy on HW prevention until 6 months. Why? Because the product kills all worms 6m and younger in the system. Ok, so why a monthly dose, then?


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## Pai (Apr 23, 2008)

Maliraptor said:


> This has always confused me.
> 
> You don't need to start a puppy on HW prevention until 6 months. Why? Because the product kills all worms 6m and younger in the system. Ok, so why a monthly dose, then?


The American Heartworm Society says it's because most pet owners can't be trusted to remember to dose their dogs properly if the interval is longer.

In most parts of the U.S., HW risk is seasonal.


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## RBark (Sep 10, 2007)

Pai said:


> The American Heartworm Society says it's because most pet owners can't be trusted to remember to dose their dogs properly if the interval is longer.
> 
> In most parts of the U.S., HW risk is seasonal.


Do you know how long in between doses you can go?


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## DJEtzel (Dec 28, 2009)

ozzy said:


> I am just wondering why you say it's a sad sight? I know it's a horrible disease but I thought if caught and treated the outcome can be okay? I don't want to hijack this thread but my dog just got diagnosed with heartworm even though he was on the monthly preventive. Maybe you can reply to my thread here in the health section if you have any tips since you have seen it a lot? I am very worried.


The outcome can be okay, but watching a dog sit in a crate for 23 hours a day for a month is sad to see. They develope neurological conditions from basically going nuts, they hurt themselves trying to get out, and they're wound tight when you take them out to potty. Then there are the little dogs that get their kidneys hit and suffer during the injection, and the dogs that react badly to it and foam at the mouth, shake, and convulse for days. I wouldn't be worried that he wouldn't make it through the surgery if he's a medium-large sized dog, but it will be sad watching him go through it.


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## Pai (Apr 23, 2008)

RBark said:


> Do you know how long in between doses you can go?


The dosing schedule maps from the abstract I linked are available on this site (the webmaster got them directly from the guys who did the study).

I HAVE heard of the 1988 study that showed that you can go up to 4 months between doses in general, but I've never been able to actually find it (only references to it).


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## RBark (Sep 10, 2007)

Thanks! That helps.


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## no.guru (Apr 9, 2010)

Pai said:


> The dosing schedule maps from the abstract I linked are available on this site (the webmaster got them directly from the guys who did the study).


Excellent link. ¡Gracias!

However, I think I will still remain at monthly dosages. What if I set my calendar for reminders every 42 days and something goes wrong - as in this last dosage? The overlap buys me time, and that's sometimes needed.


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## Pai (Apr 23, 2008)

no.guru said:


> Excellent link. ¡Gracias!
> 
> However, I think I will still remain at monthly dosages. What if I set my calendar for reminders every 42 days and something goes wrong - as in this last dosage? The overlap buys me time, and that's sometimes needed.


It really depends on your climate. Some parts of the U.S. definitely require year-round dosing. Those maps assume you're using the pills every month, they just give conservative estimates as to when in the year you can start/stop (if you're in a place where the climate actually gets cold enough to stop the HW lifecycle).


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## no.guru (Apr 9, 2010)

Pai said:


> It really depends on your climate. Some parts of the U.S. definitely require year-round dosing. Those maps assume you're using the pills every month, they just give conservative estimates as to when in the year you can start/stop (if you're in a place where the climate actually gets cold enough to stop the HW lifecycle).


Yes. Here in the American south, I won't be skipping many months - same as with tick and flea treatments.


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## no.guru (Apr 9, 2010)

I spoke with a veterinarian friend about this and he said the 11 days is nothing to worry about. He confirmed the 45 day figure mentioned by Pai in this thread.


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## LDMomma (Jul 19, 2010)

I'm in Florida. I give my girls HW meds every 5 weeks (35 days) with a couple of days on the positive side never soon than 35 days though.


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## sagira (Nov 5, 2009)

I'm in South, South Florida (the Keys) and have a new puppy. When I took Calypso in for her first vet check-up, he recommended I start her on heartworm med right away. I gave her the first tablet (she loved it, so I'm going to use it as a treat). We need HW meds year-round here, as we do fleas and tick treatments. In my case, should I go every 30, or 40 days would be fine? I can set my iPhone to remind me. Right now she's close to 11 lbs or so.

I'm worried about getting HW even if dog is on meds? I didn't know that was possible! Yikes. I'm sorry that happened. It's awful. Is there a way to complain to the company? I'm planning on using Interceptor.

As for flea and tick, I've been using Best Yet Cedarcide spray, a natural alternative, and garlic and brewer's yeast supplements, and so far no fleas or ticks, and the mosquitoes (which are abundant this time of year) are avoiding her.


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## Pai (Apr 23, 2008)

sagira said:


> I'm worried about getting HW even if dog is on meds? I didn't know that was possible! Yikes. I'm sorry that happened. It's awful. Is there a way to complain to the company? I'm planning on using Interceptor.


You (or your vet) can submit reports online through the FDA.

The product itself should have a company-direct hotline number listed somewhere that you can call, too.


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## waterbaby (Jan 20, 2009)

Pai said:


> The dosing schedule maps from the abstract I linked are available on this site (the webmaster got them directly from the guys who did the study).
> 
> I HAVE heard of the 1988 study that showed that you can go up to 4 months between doses in general, but I've never been able to actually find it (only references to it).


I have a pdf of the article if you want it.

It's actually unusual for people to treat their dogs for heartworm here. Or use flea/tick meds. The benefit of having frost advisories in August, I guess?


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## Pai (Apr 23, 2008)

waterbaby said:


> I have a pdf of the article if you want it.


Sure, I'd love to have it!


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## waterbaby (Jan 20, 2009)

Pai said:


> Sure, I'd love to have it!


PM me your email and I can send it along. Anybody else that wants it can have it too. The maps are actually not as fine resolution in the article as on the webpage...


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## Pai (Apr 23, 2008)

waterbaby said:


> PM me your email and I can send it along. Anybody else that wants it can have it too. The maps are actually not as fine resolution in the article as on the webpage...


Yeah, the website contributor asked them for better resolution ones specifically.


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## ozzy (Sep 29, 2007)

sagira said:


> I'm in South, South Florida (the Keys) and have a new puppy. When I took Calypso in for her first vet check-up, he recommended I start her on heartworm med right away. I gave her the first tablet (she loved it, so I'm going to use it as a treat). We need HW meds year-round here, as we do fleas and tick treatments. In my case, should I go every 30, or 40 days would be fine? I can set my iPhone to remind me. Right now she's close to 11 lbs or so.
> 
> I'm worried about getting HW even if dog is on meds? I didn't know that was possible! Yikes. I'm sorry that happened. It's awful. Is there a way to complain to the company? I'm planning on using Interceptor.
> 
> As for flea and tick, I've been using Best Yet Cedarcide spray, a natural alternative, and garlic and brewer's yeast supplements, and so far no fleas or ticks, and the mosquitoes (which are abundant this time of year) are avoiding her.


Look my dog got heartworm even though he was on his meds. I am not sure where all this advice is coming from that you can go 40 days or so but my vet thought he got it because I overlapped by a few days. And I was never more than five days late at the most. I would talk to my vet about this rather than trust a bunch of forum advice. Is it worth the risk to wait? Well if I had known my dog could get it there is no way I would have ever gone a day over 30 days. Maybe my vet is full of it and just telling me this but I don't know.

As far as complaining to the maker of the preventive I am screwed becaus I used interceptor for one year and then switched to heartguard because of availabilty and prices. I have no idea which one he was on when he got it


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## Pai (Apr 23, 2008)

Thing is, the failure of properly-used product to stop heartworm infection has been known since 2004 (at least). Go here to the AHS website archive and click on the .pdf called "Evaluation of Efficacy of Heartworm Preventative Products at the FDA" In 2006, and DHHS actually issued a warning letter to Merial about them claiming that their product was 100% effective.

_That's_ the main reason why I think that failure of the medicine is far more likely than a few days making any difference (it shouldn't, if you research HW lifecycle you will see why -- heartworms take months to mature to the 'heart infection' stage, 11 days is not long enough).


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## ozzy (Sep 29, 2007)

Pai said:


> Thing is, the failure of properly-used product to stop heartworm infection has been known since 2004 (at least). Go here to the AHS website archive and click on the .pdf called "Evaluation of Efficacy of Heartworm Preventative Products at the FDA" In 2006, and DHHS actually issued a warning letter to Merial about them claiming that their product was 100% effective.
> 
> _That's_ the main reason why I think that failure of the medicine is far more likely than a few days making any difference (it shouldn't, if you research HW lifecycle you will see why -- heartworms take months to mature to the 'heart infection' stage, 11 days is not long enough).


I understand and that makes sense. I wonder why my vet is saying that is the reason though. 

I guess after my experience I just wouldn't want to risk it.


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## Pai (Apr 23, 2008)

ozzy said:


> I understand and that makes sense. I wonder why my vet is saying that is the reason though.
> I guess after my experience I just wouldn't want to risk it.


Nono, don't misunderstand; I was trying to explain the importance of reporting it as a possible failure of the drug. I know that many people never report adverse drug reactions or failures, which makes it hard for the companies to realize and and fix potential problems quickly in many cases. I don't think a lot of people know that HW drugs _can_ fail, so they'd assume that _they_ made a mistake rather than consider that the medication might have been the problem and contact the company to report it.

But since you're not sure which drug he was on, that's kind if impossible to do in this case. =(


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