Flea & worm treatment seems rather expensive- advice needed!

lisabelfast · 28 July 2019 at 6:09PM

HI there,

I have always bought flea and worm tablets/spot-ons through Pets at Home, and would love some feedback on whether the product/price is my best option!

I have a 5 year old female mixed-breed dog, 15kg (so medium) who has never had fleas or worms. Currently we are giving her 1 x Millbemax tablet per month and 1 x Advantix spot-on per month. This is coming to approximately £20 per month.

Is there a cheaper solution which is just as effective? Would really appreciate any thoughts you might have

Lisa

sheramber · 28 July 2019 at 6:18PM

Have you checked the prices online?

Misslayed · 28 July 2019 at 6:18PM

We have a contract for £100/year (payable in advance) for flea, worm and tick treatment from Vets 4 Pets, who are upstairs in our Pets at Home store. She's a Patterdale/JR Cross so small, medium dog may cost more. But £20/month is £240/year.

lisabelfast · 28 July 2019 at 6:27PM

Thanks both

I'm looking Vets 4 Pets up online here and they say that you save 20 per cent by subscribing to their pet plan. Perhaps it is more costly for a medium dog, but this would be moving things in a better direction.

Both flea and worm treatments are definitely cheaper online, though I'm unsure how much a prescription would cost from my vets so this will push the cost up. It's hard to get a sense of what the cost is in a local vets.

Lisa

Katiehound · 28 July 2019 at 9:52PM

Check online for worming tablets - somewhere like Vetmedic will show you current prices. Recommended dose is every 3 months, not every month.(I'm using Ceva tablets which are same as Drontal Plus)
You do not need a vet prescription for the worming tabs.

Advantix can only be obtained from a vet- unless it has been removed from POM? I used to use it for a dog who was allergic to tick bites

My dogs have short single coat (like a boxer) and they don't get fleas, so I don't use spot ons.

sheramber · 29 July 2019 at 9:29AM

In over 40 years of dog ownership I have only twice had to treat for fleas

Once after visiting a friend whose cat had fleas but she didn't know until her own dog got them and the second time was from a holiday house.

I do not treat routinely, only when needed.

I do live in tick central so use Scalibor collars. One collar lasts 6 months and costs about £20 online.

You could look at Seresto collars which cover both fleas and ticks. These cost about £50 and last for 9 months.

Milbemax needs a prescription but unless you particularly need that , such as for lungworm, then things like Panacur and Drontal are available online without a prescription.

lisabelfast · 29 July 2019 at 8:51PM

Thanks both!

On looking it up it appears the Advantix is recommended for use with a monthly wormer, which is why the Milbemax is being used so often.

Poppy is some type of lab mix but does have fairly short fur which may be why she has never picked anything up compared to my parents labs. I had actually never considered that.

How would I know if heart or lungworm is unlikely to be an issue? Are there areas/activities which would increase risk?

Lisa

Katiehound · 29 July 2019 at 9:11PM

Just googled it, and this interactive map appeared:
https://mypetandi.bayer.com/uk/lungworm/campaign-about-lungworm/#is-lungworm-in-your-area

presumably it shows if you are in a high risk area. I don't see how it works as if you click on 'your area' it just takes you to products. Presumably the deeper the colour, the greater the risk. Your vet would know about such things.

My personal thoughts are that I try not to give my dogs a load of chemicals unless vital (or required by kennels or pet passport.)

sp1920 · 30 July 2019 at 4:37PM

I agree with Sheramber, your dog is unlikely to get fleas these days & I’m not convinced that treating something your dogs doesn’t have is a good idea for their health - for instance you wouldn’t routinely take Paracetamol if you don’t have a headache.
They are far more likely to get worms, especially if they are good at “finding” food whilst out on a walk. Drontal has always worked for my dogs, and if you shop around in the internet you can always get a good deal. Good luck.

sheramber · 30 July 2019 at 7:38PM

Katiehound wrote: »

Just googled it, and this interactive map appeared:
https://mypetandi.bayer.com/uk/lungworm/campaign-about-lungworm/#is-lungworm-in-your-area

presumably it shows if you are in a high risk area. I don't see how it works as if you click on 'your area' it just takes you to products. Presumably the deeper the colour, the greater the risk. Your vet would know about such things.

My personal thoughts are that I try not to give my dogs a load of chemicals unless vital (or required by kennels or pet passport.)

I just put my post code in and it brought a map with my location marked and at the side stated the 0 cases had been reported with 50 . miles.

Your vet would be able to advise of the risk of lungworm in your area.

The most common cause of infection is by eating slugs or snails, or grass that has snail trails left on it, toys left outside similarly may get infected if there are snails or slugs in the garden. Puddles can also be infected.

hollydays · 3 August 2019 at 8:10PM

Scalibor collars don't agree with my dog, I bought them for sandflies but removed them.

Flea & worm treatment seems rather expensive- advice needed!

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