Advocate or frontline?

[stephremon]

Advocate and milbemax both contain milbemycin so can't be used together. Droncit is the safest. You only need a tapewormer if using advocate as it covers everything else. In theory if you don't have fleas you have a much lower risk of tapeworm as fleas carry this...

[Danni and Freya]

I use milbemax with practic as I heard frontline is a waste of time, wasn't offered advocate. Have never had a problem with what I use 

[black taz]

advocate and dontral here.  Tried advantage once, the stink gave me migraine for days

[choccietoby]

Can you get Advocate without a prescritption?? Cant seem to find where to get it as would like to change Toby from frontline to it as it seems to be recommended here.

[jessandme]

Advocate does smell rather weird, at least I think it does.  OH says he can't smell it at all.  

Funny how it goes, I used have a reduced sense of smell but it has recovered now - after something like 20 years! - and now I can smell things better than he can.

choccietoby, it is a prescription med here in the UK.  You will find it available online though, you can get it sent from abroad.  We just get it from the vet.

[choccietoby]

Thanks jessandme, will pop along to the vets and ask for it there then 

[hamfam]

Sorry Guys but i couldn't read this thread without leaving a comment!

Frontline is the same now as it was 4 years ago as a prescription only medicine, the only change is in its veterinary status as it is now freely available without prescription. It is no less effective now than it was 4 years ago.

when it was deregulated, frontlines competitors, looking for a competitive edge, wrongly claimed (and were sued) that it had been made somehow less effective and that their product was superior because it required a prescription, the vets jumped on the bandwagon and spread the 'news' because they could no longer charge exorbitant fees for frontline as their clients would just buy from the local petstore at a fraction of the price. one advertising campaign (later ordered to be withdrawn and compensation paid)  directed at vets claimed that only stronghold could protect both pets and practice incomes!

Yes there are many products to choose from but to my knowledge Frontline is the ONLY product that is designed NOT to be absorbed into the animals bloodstream and as such is the ONLY product that can be safely used on lactating bitches. frontline mixes with the natural coat oils and covers the dog like a protective coat rather than being absorbed into the bloodstream.
Dont forget there are two variants of frontline - frontline and frontline plus/combo, the latter available only via prescription as it contains an extra ingredient that interrupts the fleas life-cycle, this extra ingredient is absorbed into the bloodstream.

If you have fleas in the house then simply dosing your pet with frontline, advocate or any other flea treatment will NOT get rid of them - you will need to dose your house wherever your pet has access as there will be fleas living there. As soon as the drug wears off they will be back on your pet with a vengeance.

Remember that no matter which product you use, but esp when using products absorbed into the bloodstream, not to pet or allow your children to pet the animal for several hours afterwards as anyone doing so will be getting a dose themselves!

finally there are different species of lungworm and heartworm and unless you also use a broad spectrum like drontal or milbemax you may find the spot on treatments to be too selective and not targeted at the particular worm species in your area. If you live in an area with heartworm or lungworm infestation you should also consult your vet before using wormers or spot ons that protect against the worms as they will only work on the worm larvae, and can have serious consequences or cause death in dogs already infested with adult worms.

[LurcherGirl]

Frontline is the same now as it was 4 years ago as a prescription only medicine, the only change is in its veterinary status as it is now freely available without prescription. It is no less effective now than it was 4 years ago.

As far as I know it is correct that it hasn't changed, but I personally have heard from quite a few people myself that their dogs still got fleas eventhough they are frontlined! So although it hasn't changed, there is some indication that fleas are indeed getting more resistant to it.

[hamfam]

Frontline is the same now as it was 4 years ago as a prescription only medicine, the only change is in its veterinary status as it is now freely available without prescription. It is no less effective now than it was 4 years ago.

As far as I know it is correct that it hasn't changed, but I personally have heard from quite a few people myself that their dogs still got fleas eventhough they are frontlined! So although it hasn't changed, there is some indication that fleas are indeed getting more resistant to it.

Anecdotal tales of frontline's loss of efficacy abound, the vets are more than happy to promote this myth as it means their clients look to them for expensive treatments rather than buying from local stores. The next time your vet suggests that frontline is no longer effective ask them for the evidence to back their claims - i guarantee they will back peddle rapidly and offer no evidence.

As i said treating a pet that already has fleas will not work unless you treat bedding carpets furniture etc and i suspect that most people complaining will have let the treatment lapse and then tried and failed by just treating the pet

As to its efficacy - it is still the treatment of choice for the rspca and other animal charities!

[LurcherGirl]

Frontline is the same now as it was 4 years ago as a prescription only medicine, the only change is in its veterinary status as it is now freely available without prescription. It is no less effective now than it was 4 years ago.

As far as I know it is correct that it hasn't changed, but I personally have heard from quite a few people myself that their dogs still got fleas eventhough they are frontlined! So although it hasn't changed, there is some indication that fleas are indeed getting more resistant to it.

Anecdotal tales of frontline's loss of efficacy abound, the vets are more than happy to promote this myth as it means their clients look to them for expensive treatments rather than buying from local stores. The next time your vet suggests that frontline is no longer effective ask them for the evidence to back their claims - i guarantee they will back peddle rapidly and offer no evidence.

As i said treating a pet that already has fleas will not work unless you treat bedding carpets furniture etc and i suspect that most people complaining will have let the treatment lapse and then tried and failed by just treating the pet

As to its efficacy - it is still the treatment of choice for the rspca and other animal charities!

It wasn't my vet that suggested that Frontline is less efficient, it was dog owners that I know... including myself. I mentioned this to my vet and he confirmed that he is finding the same thing. I have also seen several posts on various forums where owners are complaining that dogs treated with Frontline still got fleas...

I am not saying you are wrong, and I do know that income from this sort of source is important to vets, I am just saying that what I have heard and seen personally supports the fact - rightly or wrongly - that Frontline may not be that effective anymore.

[lindseyp]

I use Advantix monthly in the Summer as mine are prone to ticks, and Frontline in the Winter months. I also use Milbemax as a wormer every 3 months, but if they ate slugs or snails would use it monthly as it is effective against lungworm when used that often, just like Advocate is.

My friend's collie didn't eat slugs or snails... he still caught lungworm and it was fatal for him.    So please don't assume that your dog is safe if they don't eat slugs or snails. It appears that eating grass or licking toys where slugs/snails have been is enough to catch it.

This is quite correct - anywhere the slugs/snails might of been, inc. rain water puddles could be contaminated, as could be the fecal matter from infected dogs/foxes  

Sorry Guys but i couldn't read this thread without leaving a comment!
finally there are different species of lungworm and heartworm and unless you also use a broad spectrum like drontal or milbemax you may find the spot on treatments to be too selective and not targeted at the particular worm species in your area. If you live in an area with heartworm or lungworm infestation you should also consult your vet before using wormers or spot ons that protect against the worms as they will only work on the worm larvae, and can have serious consequences or cause death in dogs already infested with adult worms.

Hi hamfam  
I'm not going to comment on your good info on the effectiveness of flea treatments, as I don't routinely treat for this alone & so far haven't ever had a problem (fingers crossed when I say that though   )
How ever, it's my understanding that Advocate is the only licenced product for the effective prevention & treatment of Lungworm? ..the two you name aren't but stand corrected if I'm wrong    Purdey was diagnosed with 2 different types of lungworm a few years ago (confirmed by lung wash tests) -She was treated with Panacur for 1 month to kill the infestation of worms, a weeks break, then a further week to kill any un hatched larvae not killed by the 1st dose. The danger of death is a possibility when treating a dog with a severe infestation & the extreme change in blood pressure it causes when this happens (I think I'm right in saying that the dying worms also let off a chemical that in such a vast amount, can cause fatality in the dog too - we were given so much information at the time it's hard to recall it all ...apologies if that's wrong in any way   )
Although Panacur isn't licenced for the 'prevention' of lungworm it is proven to be very effective for the treatment of the condition.
There is a national study being done into lungworm etc, so hopefully in the not too distant future, all vets will be giving the same advice throughout the country instead of the variations we have at the moment - some of it very conflicting  

Lindsey x

[Rats and Dogs]

I use Advantix monthly in the Summer as mine are prone to ticks, and Frontline in the Winter months. I also use Milbemax as a wormer every 3 months, but if they ate slugs or snails would use it monthly as it is effective against lungworm when used that often, just like Advocate is.

My friend's collie didn't eat slugs or snails... he still caught lungworm and it was fatal for him.    So please don't assume that your dog is safe if they don't eat slugs or snails. It appears that eating grass or licking toys where slugs/snails have been is enough to catch it.

I did know that if slugs or snails are on toys or grass, etc that dogs can get lungworm - I meant that mine don't come into contact as their toys are kept indoors, and they only use the garden under supervision. I am very aware and strict as I work in a vets and know exactly what can happen.

[stephremon]

The fleas will be in all of the house, not only just where your pets are!! And as for them not being on your pet when the product is working.... They do go on the pet, they suck the blood and then die. Frontline combo inhibits the eggs from hatching, therefore treating the environment as well as the pet as any eggs that are laid cannot hatch/aren't viable. It won't stop eggs/fleas that are already in the environment though.

My two swim a lot and ear mites were a problem for other family dogs so I decided that as lungworm IS on the increase in my area and I HAVE seen the affects of this I use advocate.