Hookworm But On Interceptor

[Guest hshirlow]

Doesn't Interceptor prevent hookworm? We just received a call from the vet office that our dog has hookworm and needs to be de-wormed. She has been on Interceptor, so I'm so confused! I've read on this forum how it infects the yard via dog poop. She is a poop eater, so I guess that doesn't help, either. I will be chatting with the vet tomorrow, but in the meanwhile, any info. to calm me? I'm upset about this!

[Guest Gert]

I've been through hooks with two of my pups.

 

My vet said that Heartgard Plus, which is what I use, is supposed to protect against them, but, she said that's not foolproof because of their life cycle. We only give Heartgard once a month, and should your dog become infected, hooks require a followup dose two weeks later to make sure you got them all.

 

The bad thing is that the larvae live in the ground and it's easy for our dogs to become reinfected.

 

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=2+1622&aid=747

 

My vet gave me Nemex to worm all the dogs with, and enough for a follow-up dose two weeks later. Luckily the meds are inexpensive. Really the only thing you can do is pick up after your pup. Others on here recommend using bleach on the spots where your dog goes, but, I've heard that that's not really effective...unless your dog is going on concrete.

Edited June 23, 2010 by Gert

[Guest elisemg]

My boy is still testing positive after 2 courses of treatment for hookworm. He is now on Panacure (SP?) Hopefully this does the trick. He was also on Heartguard when he got hookworms. I am switching to Interceptor.

[Guest kydie]

I think, Heartguard Plus is supposted to have what is necessary to prevent other worm infestations, but nothing is fool proof, I am unsure if Interceptor has this, some of the vet techs here on this board can answer this better

[Guest IrskasMom]

I am really confused now to. My Vet told me , that he will no longer carry Heartguard because Intercepter is supposed to kill more Parasites then Heartguard , so I switched .

[Guest KreweOfRoo]

Interceptor and Heartguard plus are a once a month medication. Hookworms are NASTY NASTY NASTY little creatures. Hooks can be stored in the muscle and the lungs of your hounds. We have found that the best way to treat is every 10 days. We alternate between Interceptor and Pyrantel Pamoate (which is real cheap through Revival Animal) Most vets only recommend 2-3 treatments 2 weeks apart. That is not good enough. I have finally reached a reprieve with my one hound who is infected. We have treated for 6 months, every 10 days with the above medications. The pyrantel is a money saver and so much easier to medicate than the Panacur. In our rescue group, we are finding quite a few of the Florida dogs are coming in infected with the hooks, so we are becoming Jedi masters with this horrible pest. I have also found that bleaching the ground and using Diatomaceous Earth is helping with the outside. My grass isn't happy, but oh well, it will grow back....lol.

 

Good luck, it is a pain in the rear in more ways than one.

[gryhnd_adoptee]

I am really confused now to. My Vet told me , that he will no longer carry Heartguard because Intercepter is supposed to kill more Parasites then Heartguard , so I switched .

 

We've had a case of hooks while on Interceptor many years back too. The company reimbursed the vet for the initial test, and treatment, but not the follow up test to be sure she was clear. Nothing is fool proof I guess.

[Guest BooBooMama]

Heartgard Plus protects against roundworm and hookworm. Interceptor protects against roundworm, hookworm and whipworm.

That being said, no monthly protection is 100% foolproof. Your dog may have eaten a dead animal full of worms, stool from another dog that was full of larve, etc.

 

My Houdini is currently battling hookworm. She caught it before she came to live with me. This is what I am doing:

I started with Panacur C- once a day for three days in a row. I will repeat every three weeks until she has had three 'rounds'. (Some people say that if the level of infection is high dose for 5 days in a row.) Then I will wait two weeks after last treatment and have her stool rechecked. If negative, I will wait three weeks and test again (unless of course I see symptoms.) If her fecal test is positive or symptoms come back then I will repeat a treatment program but try Drontal Plus for the second series. Both Panacur and Drontal cover hookworm, roundworm, tapeworm and whipworm.

 

To prevent your dog from 'reinfecting' herself I covered the furniture and car seats (anywhere dog sits) with throws. I washed bedding, throws etc. every few days with hot water. If you have a dog run that has cement, stone etc. - wash with bleach. After each potty walk etc. I wipe her anal and back of tail area with baby wipes to remove any larvae, etc. (That way they do not re-infect themselves when they lick.)

 

As for the yard, try this:

http://www.gardenguides.com/120681-hookworm-yard-treatment.html

 

I hope this helps

Edited June 23, 2010 by BooBooMama

[greyhead]

After months of aggressive treatment with several things, we had to accept that Spencer's hookworm had encysted through his body and would probably never be "cured." No medicine can get at hookworms in their encysted state. (You can tell they've moved to the lungs when they repeatedly cough and swallow. Easy to mistake for the backward sneeze, but it's different because of the swallowing. This process reintroduces them to the digestive system. They also migrate to muscle and god knows where else.) Sorry to be debbie downer about it, but there's no point in blaming the medicines.

 

What we give now is monthly Interceptor and biannual doses of Drontal-Plus to get the at least some of the ones that Interceptor misses. But I doubt we'll ever get them all.

[Guest hshirlow]

This is all so frustrating! We contacted Interceptor and they will be communicating with our vet. She is now being treated with Drontal Plus and will have a second treatment in 2 weeks, followed by another test to see if all is clear. I'm guessing I shouldn't be too optimistic.

 

Sunshine has bee having issues for weeks now, so I'm sure my whole yard is contaminated. I guess there is nothing I can do? Just hope for the best?

[greyhead]

Well, I wouldn't call it nothing. What you can do is everything possible, administering meds faithfully and keeping an eye on things over time. You can learn how your dog acts when having a resurgence. Figure out what foods work and don't. (With Spencer it was white rice that he couldn't handle.) You can learn what you can about hookworms, their life cycle, and the particular kind of damage they do.

 

So you can do a lot to give your dog a better life. But you may have to accept in Zen-like fashion that you might not be able to make this go away entirely and forever. But you can sure as heck try anyhow!

 

ETA: And you can always come to GT for tea and sympathy! Well, okay, you'll have to make your own tea.

Edited June 24, 2010 by greyhead

[DonnaBehr]

Does your dog eat dirt in the yard? Two of my guys were bit dirt eaters and got hookworm once and they are on Interceptor. The Vet said hookworms are in the dirt and there is nothing much you can do about it if you have dirt eaters.

[Guest LittleGreys]

I am a vet tech, and the vet clinic where I work uses Interceptor. I spoke with our drug rep a few months about this. Interceptor (and Heartgard for that matter) does not PREVENT worms, they TREAT worms. It is basically a monthly dose of dewormer. The company guarantees the dog to be parasite free for 10 days following the dose of Interceptor. After that, the dog can be reinfested until the next dose is given. With a positive fecal within the 10 day period, the company will pay for treatment. Not after the 10 day period.

Again, this is what the Novartis rep told me, so someone else may be told something different.

I have had 2 fosters come to me with heavy hookworm loads, both have since continually tested negative after being kept on Interceptor.

[TwiggysMom]

!

Easy to mistake for the backward sneeze, but it's different because of the swallowing. This process reintroduces them to the digestive system.

 

This is a really interesting comment to me. It could explain a lot! I had a foster who was returned to the group I foster for from a neglectful home (lived in the garage, never spayed, terrible teeth & nails, etc.). She did what I assumed was reverse sneezing. Several months after she went to her forever home, her new family emailed me with a heads up that their vet told them she was “full of whips” (they were concerned that she may have passed them to my girl).

 

Your comment makes me now think that she was actually exhibiting symptoms of her whipworm infestation. Great piece of info to tuck away for future reference!

[Guest hshirlow]

Interesting! Sunshine took the Interceptor on the 19th but got her stool checked on the 20th. So, the Interceptor may not have completed it's just as of yet (we are talking she was tested within 12 hours of taking the meds). I'll be curious to see what Interceptor tells us!