Is Heartgard Plus safe for my Border Collie?

Question

In the description for the Heartgard Plus heartworm prevention chewables, it said that it's safe for Collies and Collie mixes, but if you scroll down further it says "use with caution in Collies". I'm confused...is it safe for my Border Collie or not with the correct dosage?

Answer 1

Ok here's the truth about Heartgard and collies/herding breeds:
The active ingredient in Heartgard is Ivermectin. Ivermectin in high concentrations (such as used to deworm cattle) can be dangerous to some collies. Not all collies carry the gene that causes sensitivity, but for arguments sake, let assume they all do.
The amount of ivermectin is SO SMALL in Heartgard it is completely safe in collies. We're talking MICRO-GRAMS of ivermectin here in each dose.
1 ml is ~263 micrograms, so even the largest size of Heartgard only has just barely over 1ml of ivermectin in it. This dose is so low, that even those dogs with an ivermectin sensitivity are ok to use the Heartgard.
The Heartgard company has done a lot of research on this, and they even contracted the Lassie dog to be a "spokes dog" at one point. Currently the medium size of Heartgard has a Border Collie on the box, just to show again it is safe.
Where the problem arises is, many farmers and owners of many dogs (even some irresponsible vets) will purchase a bottle of ivermectin (as sold as a dewormer) and try to dose out the liquid as a monthly preventative. While is is MUCH cheaper to do it this way, it is impossible to dose with this type of ivermectin, and leads to many sensitivities in a lot of dogs (even non hearding breeds)
http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=518

Answer 2

Collies and related breeds have a sensitivity to ivermectin, the main active ingredient in Heartgard Plus. The dosage used is in the micrograms, which *should* be safe in any breed; but because of known problems they have a caution message in anything that contains ivermectin - it's a CYA message. If you're still concerned, consider another heartworm preventative such as Interceptor that uses a different active ingredient.

Answer 3

I had a Border Collie mix and he was on Heartguard. When he was a few years old he began having seizures. About the same time I saw a commercial for Heartguard that indicted possible neurological side effects. I decided to try just stopping the Heartguard. Guess what? he never had another seizure again. I kept him off Heartguard for the rest of his life and he lived to be 15 years old. There is something to this. I was giving him the correct dosage based on his weight. I believe 1 chewable. I guess he was just sensitive to it. At the time Heartguard was the only heartworm preventative. Also he was tested at the vet after the first seizure and bloodwork came back normal.

Answer 4

With the correct dosage, yes, it is safe. Collies are more sensitive to the active ingredient in Heartgard (ivermectin) than other breeds of dogs, but if you give the proper dose, it is perfectly fine.

In response to the person suggesting that you could skip it all together--do not listen to them. There are other types of heartworm prevention you can use--such as Interceptor or Revolution--if you are worried. However, if you do not use heartworm prevention at all your dog is still susceptible to heartworm disease, which is much more deadly than heartgard. The treatment of heartworm disease is also much more dangerous than Heartgard.

Answer 5

Don't believe that it is just collies. Many (possibly all) herding breeds as well as a very few sight hounds (long haired whippet is one) can have this drug sensitivity with collies having a higher risk of having the defect. Also, it is not just Ivermectin. Many drugs including cancer treatments, anesthetics, and wormers can cause dogs with this defect to react. It is caused by a mutant gene referred to as MDR1. You can do a simple test to find out if your dog has this gene. The test is done at home with a cheek swab and you just mail it to the place you ordered your swabs from. You can get three results. Normal/Normal means that your dog does not have the gene and will not have the drug sensitivities. In the case of breeding, it also means that it cannot pass on a defective gene for THIS particular problem. Mutant/Normal means that the dog has one copy of the gene and may or may not have drug sensitivities to one, several, or all of the drugs that this gene interacts with. Theoretically, if this dog were bred, it would pass on the gene to half of its offspring. Mutant/Mutant means that the dog WILL be sensitive to certain drugs. This dog CANNOT pass on an normal gene and all of its offspring will have one copy of the gene. Depending on the genes the mate had, you can have either all carriers (only one copy of gene), all affected (two copies of gene), or a mix of carries and affected. More information can be found by following the link below including informaion on the research, the drugs that react with this gene, and where to order a test kit.

Answer 6

I don't think it is that abnormal for a 5 week old puppy to be weaned. Sometimes the mother weans them earlier than the breeder might like, nobody can help this. The breeder is feeding wet food so they are getting the nutrients they need. However, 5 weeks is too young to be away from the mother and rest of the litter. Even if the mother doesn't associate with the puppies that much, puppies learn how to play appropriately with their littermates. They learn that biting can hurt (very important!), they learn how to interact with other dogs. The mother may or may not teach the puppies things like when they are being too playful/bitey with her, that they need to stay around the other dogs, etc.

Answer 7

I wouldn't try it without a test dose of Ivermectin. Many of the herding breeds are senstive to Ivermectin. You can ask your vet about Interceptor with this dog. I use Ivermectin on my German Shepherds, but do know of a few that have died from Ivermectin at different kennels. With my dogs, I always give a test dose before I go ahead and does them with the correct dosage. There is now a genetic test that some GSD breeder's are doing on their dogs to determine if their dog is sensitive or not. Talk to your vet about this please.

Answer 8

it is safe
it only goes for rough and smooth collies,
and only some have the fatal reaction

border collies, shelties, aussies beardies etc, can have a reaction but usulaly for ivermectin used for mange (high dosages) not the low dose for heartworm prevention

but if you are really worried you can skip it altogether, use some kinda mosquito repellent advantix or something, and just keep up with the bloodtests

good luck

Answer 9

Not sure. Call manufacturer.