he ate 3 months of heartworm medicine

[haha]

hi yall im new here! my babys name is willie--he's 18 weeks old and now he's the love of my life! well i left him alone in my room for an hour while i went to class. normally he does just fine and just plays with his toys. well today he found his heartworm medicine--which i keep on a shelf in my closet(no idea how he got it)!! he ate three months worth of it. its been an hour and he seems normal--should i worry? the vet wont answer my calls

[Pipedream Farm]

Read the product insert that came with the hearworm med. Read the section on minimum dose and x minimum dose needed to produce adverse reactions. Figure out how much your dog ate in terms of minumum dose (i.e. 3x the minimum dose) and see if that produces adverse reactions.

 

Mark

[Debbie Crowder-BaaramuLuke]

You can always call Merial (or the manufacturer, if not yummy Heartgard), they have a wonderful customer service crew. Or call another veterary office, this question is pretty generalized.

I guess you have to find another place for meds...good thing is wasn't something just as yummy like Rimadyl. THAT would be a problem. Consider it a lesson learned, a gift from above!

[Pipedream Farm]

Now that I have a little time, here is the type of calculation you should do.

 

 

Let?s say your dog is 26 lbs and ate 3 of the 26-50 lb HeartGard chewables. That means your dog consumed 408 micrograms of ivermectin. The minimum dose is 2.72 micrograms/lb body weight, so your dog ate 15.7 micrograms/lb or 5.77x the minimum dose. Merial tested (Trial Data) for adverse reactions and found none up to 10x the minimum dose in collies that were sensitive to ivermectin. In this scenario your dog would be OK after eating 3 months worth heartworm meds.

 

Source: HEARTGARD? Chewables

 

Mark

[diane allen]

I have this phone number on my refrigerator at home and in my wallet (for traveling purposes): 1-888-426-4435. It is the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center. Seems like something everyone should have on hand! I called once, and my question was so simple, they didn't charge me at all. Still it would be worth $50 or so to know that a problem wasn't imminent.

 

I'm glad Willie will be OK. But I would heartily recommend getting an expert opinion when a dog eats any medications. Some might be OK, others are definitely not. With them, you might need to induce vomiting or see a vet immediately.

Don't take a chance!

 

Check the www.aspca.org web site for more info on the Poison Control Center.

 

"What is the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center ?

For over 25 years, the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center has been the premier animal poison control center in North America . The center, an allied agency of the University of Illinois , is the only facility of its kind staffed by 25 veterinarians including 6 board-certified veterinary toxicologists and 10 certified veterinary technicians. Located in Urbana , Illinois , the specially trained staff provides assistance to pet owners and specific analysis and treatment recommendations to veterinarians pertaining to toxic chemicals and dangerous plants, products or substances 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. In 2004, the center handled over 95,000 cases. In addition, the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center provides extensive veterinary toxicology consulting on a wide array of subjects including legal cases, formulation issues, product liability, regulatory reporting and bio surveillance."

[Allie Oop]

Thanks for the number, Diane! You're right -- it's very good to have. I'm going to post it on my fridge.

[fooshuman]

Allie have you thought about create training your pup? It is a wise thing to do for your pup. No worrying he'll get into things he shouldnt be in.(while your out) I've heard of some aweful things happening to puppies who we're left out to play.

 

 

Diane Thank you for the #! That is going on my frig as well.

[Allie Oop]

Allie is crate trained and is never left out alone in the house at all. ( Fooshuman, I think you mistook my response to Diane as one from the original poster.)

 

I do think, however, that your point is a very valid one . Haha, you might consider Fooshuman's suggestion to crate train Willie if you are going to leave him alone in your house. A BC puppy (in fact, almost any puppy) can wreak an awful lot of havoc.

 

I was not originally in favor of crating (although Allie was crate-trained at the rescue we got her from) because I thought it seemed cruel and I had never crated any of my previous dogs. Well, after a few hair raising experiences of my own and from reading posts from others on the board, I decided it might not be such a bad idea. When Allie injured her shoulder playing at the dog park, we purchased a crate and started using it for the first time. I am now a believer.

 

We don't crate her all the time - she has free reign of the house anytime we are home (although the door is always open so she can bolt in there if we run the big scary vacuum cleaner ). But, if we are leaving her alone in the house for ANY length of time, she is crated. It is truly for the dog's protection and is in their best interest.

 

There are a lot of good posts by the experienced folks on this board and if you do a search on crate training you can get a lot of good information. Good luck with Willie!

[fooshuman]

Oppsie your right Allie sometimes my brain isnt functioning at 100% *wink wink*

[Allie Oop]

No worries. Your post was a good one -- these BCs seem game to try to experience almost everything they encounter and "an ounce of prevention . . . ."