Heartworm and tick season is upon us once again. With the continued increase in
tick borne disease, it is more important than ever to be vigilant about tick control.
There will be no change to our heartworm prevention protocol. We will be using
Interceptor once again, as it is still an excellent product for both prevention of
heartworm disease and internal parasite control. As in the past, we will give
Interceptor June 1- November 1 for dogs that do not travel, as it acts
retroactively for 30 days prior to use. If the June 1 start date is missed, it should
be started as soon as possible and continued on that date monthly through that
date in November (i.e., June 18- November 18). For any dog that is traveling,
Interceptor should be started one month after the first mosquito exposure and
given monthly until there is no further exposure, stopping November 1 or later.

This year our primary tick prevention will be Vectra 3D. We are no longer
recommending Frontline as it is just not working as well as it has in the past. We
feel that Vectra is going to provide better protection not only against ticks, but
also against mosquitos, flies and fleas. It should be started April 1 and applied once
a month through November 1. For pets living in high tick areas, year-round
application should be considered. It is important to apply Vectra in multiple spots
along the top line as it can cause an itch response in rare instances and applying it
in multiple spots can help to reduce the chances. The active ingredient Permethrin
is toxic to cats, therefore it is necessary to separate dog and cats so the cats can
not lick the Vectra off the dog before it dries. Once it dries, there are no
concerns.

Promeris will still be available as a highly effective alternative for tick prevention.
All pets do need to be separated for 8-12 hours post application, as ingestion of
the product can cause temporary neurological symptoms. After that initial period,
the application area can be wiped with a warm moist cloth and it will remove the
residue as well as any odor still present. We still do have Frontline Plus and
Frontline Top Spot available also.

Once again there have been no price increases on any of our heartworm or tick
medications. Vectra is priced the same as Frontline Plus. There are rebates on 6
and 12 dose purchases of both Interceptor and Vectra, although we will still sell
both by the individual dose.