Bravecto and Nexguard flea treatment - a warning (1 Viewer)

Janine

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Many vets are now recommending Bravecto and Nexguard as the new superdrug for battling fleas and ticks.

They are given as a tablet which lasts for 3 months. Pretty good @ about £40 a dose - much easier and cheaper than spot-ons.

Unfortunately, if your dog has an adverse reaction, there is no antidote and dogs are dying as a result.

I was lucky. Buzz had a dose in June with no problem but, just before his second dose, a friend's dog died after being given Bravecto so I didn't give him any more.

At first, our vet denied Bravecto was to blame but has since stopped prescribing it. The other veterinary practice in town only prescribes it if the customer signs a desclaimer absolving them of any responsibility if the dog becomes ill.

It can cause seizures, liver and kidney damage, neurological disorders and digestive problems.

Merck, the manufacturers, are denying liability although they have been paying for vet treatment for affected dogs worldwide :confused:

There are 2 facebook groups which are giving advice:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/704330073037200/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/411371212394679/

and a petition asking Merck to stop manufacturing Bravecto:
https://www.change.org/p/bravecto-f...ould-be-removed-from-the-market-without-delay

Please be very wary if your vet offers you Bravecto or Nexguard for your dogs!
 
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Our three have been on Bravecto for a couple of years now with no problems, Boston has epilepsy and is on a cocktail of drugs, she's been fine no problems with it.
It's much easier for us rather than having to carry the liquids to dose every month as they all swim most days.

Lin :)
Edit, because of her epilepsy medication Boston has to have blood tests every 6months, to date all her results have been normal.

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Janine

Janine

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Why? We carry on using it on the say-so of ONE vet??? How much was he paid by Merck, I wonder?

Merck, the manufacturers of Bravecto, are self-governing. They do their own research and publish their own data which is not independently audited. They have billions of $ at stake so are not going to go down without a fight on this.

They have already amended the warnings on the spot-on version to say that it may cause seizures but it is apparently ok to give it orally. Really?

Also, as that vet says, it is excreted in faeces. Which are eaten by bugs. Which are eaten by birds. How much research has been done on that outcome, I wonder.
 

Mr Milliemobile

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Why? We carry on using it on the say-so of ONE vet??? How much was he paid by Merck, I wonder?

Merck, the manufacturers of Bravecto, are self-governing. They do their own research and publish their own data which is not independently audited. They have billions of $ at stake so are not going to go down without a fight on this.

They have already amended the warnings on the spot-on version to say that it may cause seizures but it is apparently ok to give it orally. Really?

Also, as that vet says, it is excreted in faeces. Which are eaten by bugs. Which are eaten by birds. How much research has been done on that outcome, I wonder.
I only posted that link for a balanced view it was suggested as a read by a vet forum I checked out. Many drugs given to our pets can cause adverse reactions, I doubt they are tested as well as human drugs. Our dog Boston had a severe reaction to a medication that nearly killed her. I reported the issue direct to manufacturer and they said it had been incorrectly prescribed by the vet.
Broken Link Removed adverse reaction to spot on flea treatment

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Zoppydog

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Any medication, for human or animal consumption, can have an adverse effect in some people/animals. Doesn't mean we all have stop taking it. Being aware of adverse reactions is important but every drug on the market has side effects. All medication should be taken under medical supervision.
Chris
 
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Janine

Janine

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Absolutely. I think what makes this different is that the drug is designed to stay in the system for 3 months. In fact, it stays in the system for up to a year making subsequent doses accumulate in the dog's body. If there is a reaction, there is no way back.
 
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Any medication, for human or animal consumption, can have an adverse effect in some people/animals. Doesn't mean we all have stop taking it. Being aware of adverse reactions is important but every drug on the market has side effects. All medication should be taken under medical supervision.
Chris
Couldn't agree more its risks and benefits if it has no side effects it does nothing. If a friends dog has a problem its worrying and might make you decide not to treat your dog it doesn't prove its an evil drug. Its like thinking if your dad smoked and lived to 90 that smoking is safe it just proves he was lucky in the same way an adverse reaction in one case or a group of cases can just be bad luck.

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We used an "Asunthal" (not quite sure if that is the right spelling) basedc mix for our Dogs, as a flea rinse. Some places, but with a higher concentration, use it for Sheep Dip.
Shampoo the Pooch, Rinse, then mix the goo in large 1 litre jug and pour over pooch, don't rinse.

In Sydney at the height of summer we had to flea rinse our pooch every 2 weeks, Dog fleas, sand fleas, grass fleas, and of course, on top of that you had Heart Worm Tablets, Tablets for Hydatids, the poor old pooch had more chemicals on board than ICI :doh:
 

Mack100

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When people are relying on Facebook posts for information rather than a respected peer reviewed journal then I suspect hysteria is taking hold.
The implication that Merck are manipulating results and that they are foisting a dangerous drug on our pets needs proof without which it's a hollow accusation.
I will continue to administer Bravecto to our dog until the moment a competent authority advises otherwise rather than listen to Facebook posts.
 
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Janine

Janine

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Everyone is free to do as they wish.

My friend lost her 15 month old collie after giving it Bravecto.

Our vets are now refusing to prescribe it.

That's enough to put me off giving it to mine again.

No hysteria here (y)

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Langtoftlad

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Bravecto is certainly being heavily pushed.
A while back I drew attention to a newspaper report highlighting an increase in UK tick infestation, research by Bristol University...
Broken Link Removed
However, the question was raised - who paid for the research - yup, ultimately the manufacturer of Bravecto.

I went to 'register' Kerry at the local vet, big display of... Bravecto.
On a phone call, vet nurse recommended... Bravecto as being more effective than "Front line".

All might be true - Bravecto might be the most effective for the majority of pets but I didn't realise it was 'new'.

Would you risk your pet, on the off chance yours might be the one to suffer fatal side effects?
Sorry, not for fleas.
Not when there are proven & effective alternatives
I'll stick with the experience of the racing kennels, and what she uses & recommends.

Attitude might be different if it was a terminal prognosis and tried & tested treatment had failed.

So thank you @Janine for your warning.
One dog dying from side effects is one too many - especially as there are alternatives.
 

Mack100

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To cite the death of 1 dog as a valid reason to avoid a medication is frankly ridiculous, there would be no medicines left to take!
Spot-on tick and flea treatments are also toxic with many reported adverse reactions.
The risk of death from tick and flea borne diseases is far greater than that from known treatments.
 
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Janine

Janine

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To cite the death of 1 dog as a valid reason to avoid a medication is frankly ridiculous, there would be no medicines left to take!
Spot-on tick and flea treatments are also toxic with many reported adverse reactions.
The risk of death from tick and flea borne diseases is far greater than that from known treatments.

So it is ridiculous to cite both personal experience and many, many instances of illness and death from across the world which have been collated by using social media? Is it also ridiculous to give others this information so that they can make their own decision? Not in my world, it's not!

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Mack100

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So it is ridiculous to cite both personal experience and many, many instances of illness and death from across the world which have been collated by using social media? Is it also ridiculous to give others this information so that they can make their own decision? Not in my world, it's not!
I prefer science based information rather than Facebook and Mumsnet type advice.
 
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Janine

Janine

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I prefer science based information rather than Facebook and Mumsnet type advice.

Each to his/her own.

I prefer being able to connect to people from all over the world who have first- hand experience and knowledge rather than 'science based information' which has not been verified by an exterior body.

Maybe you shouldn't believe anything you read on forums ;)
 
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I used Comfortis ( comfort ) flea tablets on one of mine some years back. thought they were dear at 14€.each:LOL:
I've just looked & bravecto are 20,76€ here. Bit of a mark up in the expensive UK again.:(

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Mack100

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Each to his/her own.

I prefer being able to connect to people from all over the world who have first- hand experience and knowledge rather than 'science based information' which has not been verified by an exterior body.

Maybe you shouldn't believe anything you read on forums ;)
Information is called science based precisely because it has been verified, it's called testing.
 
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Janine

Janine

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I used Comfortis ( comfort ) flea tablets on one of mine some years back. thought they were dear at 14€.each:LOL:
I've just looked & bravecto are 20,76€ here. Bit of a mark up in the expensive UK again.:(

Just looked at our vet's website and for a 15kg dog Comfortis is £45 for 6 x 1 monthly tabs. Bravecto is £29.40 for 1 x 3 month tab
 
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Janine

Janine

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Information is called science based precisely because it has been verified, it's called testing.

As I have already said, Merck's testing of this hasn't been independently verified.

I think we should agree to disagree on this one, OK? (y)

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Feb 24, 2013
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we now use Nexguard, not seen any negative reports and comes in a meat flavoured tablet that Lola at least takes as a treat (y)

wouldn't fancy a £40 tablet that got spat out :(
 

Langtoftlad

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To cite the death of 1 dog as a valid reason to avoid a medication is frankly ridiculous, there would be no medicines left to take!
Spot-on tick and flea treatments are also toxic with many reported adverse reactions.
The risk of death from tick and flea borne diseases is far greater than that from known treatments.
If there were no proven alternatives to Bravecto, you might have a point - but there are.
 
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Janine

Janine

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we now use Nexguard, not seen any negative reports and comes in a meat flavoured tablet that Lola at least takes as a treat (y)

wouldn't fancy a £40 tablet that got spat out :(

Have a bit of a google and you'll find that there are negative reports but apparently I'm just being hysterical by pointing this out.

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Feb 24, 2013
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Have a bit of a google and you'll find that there are negative reports but apparently I'm just being hysterical by pointing this out.

wasn't having a pop, actually didn't read your thread title properly o_O

thought I was offering an alternative to Bravecto

yet again - note to self, don't post after second G + T o_O
 
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Janine

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