Ivermectin is an ingredient used in some very popular heartworm medications today to prevent your dog from contracting heartworms. Vets don't want you to know that this same ingredient that is in your heartworm medication can be bought over the counter in feed stores or in pet magazines for the low cost of $35.00 or less for a 50 ml bottle, which will last a very long time. They also don't want you to know that this same ingredient is also used to treat dogs with mild cases of heartworm infection. They claim that they are scared that you will overdose your pet but yet they try to keep the dosing specifications a secret. The truth is, they want your business. They want to keep you coming back. If you do everything yourself, they go out of business.
Ivermectin is not recommended for some dog breeds like: Collies, Shepherds & Sheepdogs. Included in these are the Border Collie, the Bearded Collie, the Australian Shepherd, the English Shepherd, the Sheltie, the Silken Windhound, the Shetland Sheepdog & the Old English Sheepdog. Vets avoid prescribing heartwormers that include Ivermectin to the herding group like the Collies, Shepherds & Sheepdogs altogether. Instead, they use heartwormers with other ingredients like Interceptor & Sentinel which contain the ingredient, Milbemycin Oxime. They also use ProHeart which contains the ingredient, Moxidectin. Collies, Shepherds & Sheepdogs have a genetic gene which causes an allergic reaction to the ingredient Ivermectin. This has proved true in 80% of all Collie dogs in the US alone.
Ivermectin does not just treat & prevent your dog from getting heartworms. It also treats them for certain types of mange like sarcoptic, notoedric and demodectic mange and ear mites. It kills internal parasites like roundworms (not tapeworms). It also kills body lice on just about every kind of animal there is.
Ivermectin is used in dogs, cats, swine, cattle, horses, birds, rodents and even humans. It has a bitter taste and may be rejected by any animal. It is taken best if mixed with the food for the heartworming & worming of dogs, cats & other animals. It can also be injected into an animal's skin for the treatment of mange, lice or mites. It has been proven safe in pregnant & nursing dogs and in puppies & kittens over 4 weeks of age.
Ivermectin in extremely high doses does have side effects. These side effects include: dilated pupils, a drunken state, respiratory failure and even death if not treated.
Ivermectin sold over the counter is called, Ivomec or Agri-Mectin Injectable. If you do decide to use this drug yourself, please keep in mind that the vets do not recommend it. Never use anything but the 1% solution and be sure that your dog is not of the herding group. If you are not sure what breed your dog is, then please don't try to treat your dog to prevent heartworms, mange, lice or mites yourself with this medication. It could kill it, should it contain the allergic gene. If you insist on treating your dog yourself, then it has been recommended by individuals who have consulted with vets (not by vets themselves) that one tenth of a cc of Ivomec or Agri-Mectin for every ten pounds of your dog's body weight, given every 30 days is sufficient for treating them for heartworm prevention and this same dose given every day for 14 days will rid your dog of lice, mites and mange.
If your dog has been tested positive for heartworms then this medication is what is used to treat it for this condition but the dosing is a little more severe and a lot more dangerous. You should do your homework before ever attempting to treat your dog for this condition yourself. Sure, without treatment your dog will probably die anyway in no time but you do want to save it, not kill it quicker.
Any heartworm preventative is recommended to be started way before your pet turns six months old due to the fact that it could already be carrying full grown adult heartworms in its bloodstream by then. If your pet is over six months of age then you do need to get it tested for heartworms before attempting to prevent something that may already exist anyway.
