General Product Information
Heartgard Plus is a heartworm, roundworm, and hookworm prevention and treatment medication that comes in chewable tablet form. Heartgard Plus is intended for dogs six weeks and older, and is given monthly on prescription by a qualified veterinarian.
Heartgard Plus offers the benefits of coming in a tasty chewable tablet form, and it can effectively control a wide variety of intestinal pests. In addition, Heartgard Plus is potent enough so that you only have to give it to your pet once a month.
Heartgard Plus
The primary active ingredient in Heartgard Plus is Ivermectin, which is a broad-spectrum antiparasitic medication that is particularly effective against heartworms. In addition, Heartgard Plus also contains an anthelminthic that effectively prevents the growth of roundworms and hookworms.
As mentioned earlier, Heartgard Plus comes in chewable tablet form, and it is important that your dog does not swallow the tablet whole. In order to aid in the absorption of the primary active ingredients, you may want to break up the tablet into smaller pieces and mix it into your dog’s food instead. It is also important to make sure that Heartgard Plus is administered to your dog once a month throughout the entire year. Do not skip on medication during the winter months, as this can cause a reinfestation in already healthy dogs. If you fail to give Heartgard Plus to your dog for more than two months, you should ask your veterinarian what is the best course of action to take. In some cases, your veterinarian may require you to shift to another heartworm medication instead.
Heartgard Plus is manufactured by Merial, and Virbac also markets it under the Iverhart Plus brand. Both medications are available in generic form as Ivermectin and Pyrantel pamoate.
Possible Side Effects As Acknowledged By The Manufacturer
Side effects associated with the use of Heartgard Plus are quite rare, although they do occur under certain circumstances in susceptible animals. Some of the side effects that you may notice are dilated pupils and lower body weight. In extreme cases, your dog may even experience tremors and possibly even die, although it should be noted that such cases are extremely rare.
Customer Reviews
Most pet owners report favorably on the effects of Heartgard Plus in their animals, preferring it to other types of heartworm medication. In fact, Heartgard Plus has become an almost de facto standard as far as heartworm medication goes, and many users have reported using it successfully for several years, and wouldn’t even consider using any other brand.
One customer did switch over to the generic form of Heartgard Plus, encouraged mainly by the considerably lower cost. Although this pet owner initially had trouble getting his dogs to swallow the new medication, he reports that it provided just as much heartworm protection as the more expensive brand. He further reports that his dogs eventually grew to like the taste of the new medication and has since had no trouble swallowing it.
One customer has been using Heartgard Plus for several months now, and is particularly enthusiastic about the considerable amount of money that he saves every year on what he would normally have to pay in veterinarian fees. This customer has since recommended Heartgard Plus to friends that are also pet owners.
Finally, one customer reports giving Heartgard Plus to a 24 pound Beagle for over three years. The dog in question initially had a problem with nausea, although this quickly cleared up after a few days. The dog has since been free from heartworm infestation, and the owner expects favorable results for the foreseeable future.
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