Profender for MDR hookworms

[smt]

I am reading (on the "getting rid of parasites" fb page) as well as hearing (from a GH savvy vet in AL) that some people are having success with using Profender as a treatment for MDR hookworms.  This is an off label use, as it is meant to be applied topically to cats, but us being used orally in dogs.  I would NEVER try this without consulting with an informed vet, however, I am intrigued and wonder if any of ya'll have gone this route, and if so, with what outcome?

 

 

[KF_in_Georgia]

The vet for Southeastern Greyhound Adoption (SEGA) recommends this. It MUST be administered by a vet; this isn't something vets should send home with pet owners and let them do it themselves. This is one of the few meds that has been reliably successful, but the veterinary community is unwilling to risk owners giving less than the complete dose (because the dog spits it out or fights it); giving a smaller dose is the sort of thing that triggers weakened resistance to a med, and the veterinary community could wind up with its only successful med suddenly becoming less reliable.

If you're interested, have your vet call SEGA's vet: Dr Toby Carmichael, Lake City Animal Hospital at (770) 974-3536. He's willing to advise interested vets.

Several of SEGA's members have used this. I don't have experience with this because I've managed to dodge hookworm-hell; I got my two greyhounds before every dog coming out of Florida had drug-resistant hooks. But Dr Carmichael is the vet SEGA members call if their regular vet needs greyhound advice or if their dog needs something tricky.

[greysmom]

This is based on a new study coming out of a University setting (Georgia, I think).  It has been tested but it's quite dangerous and needs to be vet administered.

If you have a dog with hooks, you might talk with your vet about starting a course with the reconfigured ProHeart6 or ProHeart12 shots.  My vet spoke to the manufacturer and is now recommending it for nearly all her clinic's dogs that have infestations, whether they are greyhounds or not, or have medication resistant hooks or not.  The key is that the medication in the injections is continuously released in the bloodstream for 6 or 12 months.  This eliminates the "timing" issue you have with oral/topical medications with the lifecycle of the parasites.  It eliminates the issue of larval leak.  And because it's continuous for many months in a row, owners don't have to remember to keep giving medications.  It's also much safer than using Profender as described.

I use it with all my dogs and we have had zero negative side effects - even my dog that has issues with everything else!  My dog with hooks tested clean after 2 months and no further infestations have occurred in her or my other two dogs.

I think this is the actual study.

Efficacy evaluation of anthelmintic products against an infection with the canine hookworm