<p>I had a phone call from a young adult relative who has adopted a dog. His family were not “dog” people. He had some questions about fleas and pet insurance.
We have always had dogs and in the past have used different flea prevention for our dogs. The vet he took his adopted dog to recommended Advantix for the fleas and Heartguard for heart worm. I was not sure about the heart worm. We don’t give our dogs anything to prevent heart worm. Our vet said in our area heart worm is not a problem.
A couple of questions- For fleas is a topical such as Advantix enough? We give our dogs both Program and use Frontline Plus.
Is heartworm medication necessary? He lives in the Southeast.
Also he said asked about pet insurance. We don’t have insurance on our dogs but we can afford to treat them if needed. He will have a problem if he has a big vet bill. The adoption group gave him 1 month free pet insurance. He asked me if he should continue it after the month. He feels he can pay the small premium. Any experience with pet insurance?</p>
<p>No experience with pet insurance, but heart worm preventative is definitely a necessity in the southeast.</p>
<p>Around here heartworm is a problem, meds for only 9 of 12 months, though. Heartworm treatment can be expensive as my sister found out. Pet insurance- would need to read the policy carefully for what it does/doesn’t cover. Personal habits and dog breed may play a role- our small dog would never had swallowed a towel and needed surgery like someone else’s dog. We also had a philosophy of what we considered worth spending on a dog’s health.</p>
<p>Heartworm preventative is a necessity in the southeast. Prescription only item.</p>
<p>Advantix is a good product – it kills and <em>repels</em> fleas, ticks, and other nasty bugs. It’s expensive … but it works. Figure the cost on a daily basis to bring the numbers down to reality for you! It’s somewhere around $1/day. Generally available OTC and from vets.</p>
<p>Pet insurance … I would tell him to set aside the pet insurance dollars himself each month into a savings account labled pet emergencies. Just MHO – but I would self insure.</p>
<p>Have always had large dogs and we use Advantix. forgot early this summer and groan, we have fleas. Coming at them hard core now. </p>
<p>Never did pet insurance.</p>
<p>Currently, the cost of an emergency surgery can cost anywhere from $2,000 to $5,000. Years ago, the consensus was pet insurance wasn’t worth it. I think today, with the way costs have risen, it is.</p>
<p>We refer to our dog as a “tick magnet”. If a tick is within a mile, it finds our dog. At the suggestion of a co-worker I bought Advantix and we have not seen a tick on her since.</p>
<p>I give her the Heartguard chewable every month.She thinks it’s a treat and loves it. It is necessary where we live (VA).</p>
<p>Our vet practice is part of a chain which operates in a large chain of pet product stores and we are on a plan where we pay a fixed amount each month which covers her exams, teeth cleaning, vaccinations, etc. It has saved us a lot of money. I don’t know if it the best thing for everyone, but we are happy with it.</p>
<p>I think it really depends on not only where you live but also how cautious you are of your dog and his/her surroundings. Our dog has never taken any sort of flea prevention other than what his normal $4 dog shampoo claims and has never had a problem in the 6 years we’ve had him (we adopted him at 8 weeks old). We do give him heart worm pills monthly but like with the fleas, he doesn’t really have anywhere to pick them up from as he doesn’t come into contact with other dogs and we live in a richer neighborhood so even if he does, chances are the other owners are giving their dogs the meds. But in the case of your relative, flea prevention would probably be a good idea since I bet fleas are more prevalent in the southeast than in the cold northeast. You shouldn’t really need pet insurance if you’re very cautious of your pet. The only time we needed to take him to the vet for something was b/c the groomer cut him and from licking the area he got infected and it turned into “groomer’s rash.” The bill for the visit, meds, and extra since it was an emergency visit on a Sunday was only $120 total so I don’t think pet insurance is really necessary.</p>
<p>My dog gets somewhat severe allergic reactions to flea bites. She becomes extremely itchy and we have to give her benadryl.
We give her a heartburn/flea pill for about 8 months a year or so.<br>
Our vet in IL has always told us to give her a heart worm pill. The pills are cheap compared to treatment for heart worm.</p>
<p>We have 2 small dogs…I have spent thousands on vet bills…so depends on how lucky/unlucky your friend is with dog’s health…</p>
<p>A lot of people probably would just put the dogs down…we could not do it…For the most part they are healthy with the help of meds</p>
<p>Both are bischons</p>
<p>1 has had pancreatitis 2 times (at the tune of $600 each occurance)
Hip surgery
infected foot</p>
<p>other has had
removal of bladder stone
hypothyroidism (takes pill 2 x day)
Problems with adrenal gland…a few thousand to diagnois and get under control…now on daily steroid pill and shot every 25 days (She weights 11 pounds…medication for the shot cost me about $15 it is weight dependent so if a 40 lbs dog needed it then cost would be $60 month…just for the medication…I’m a nurse so they let me give it myself)
On top of that she has blood work every 6 months to check her levels
various x-rays if she becomes sick</p>
<p>you get the picture…Our dog’s have not had any injuries…just unlucky in the health department…I haven’t checked into pet insurance as I doubt they’d qualify now…For us it would proabably have been worth it 
YMMV</p>
<p>It seems as if even dogs suffer from being denied health care because of preconditions! Once health care for humans is reformed, maybe we should get to work on pet insurance? xD</p>
<p>You might want to check the following thread. Fleas have been on everyone’s minds recently.</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/769965-fleas.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/769965-fleas.html</a></p>