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Pre-Surgical Information
Spaying or neutering your pet is a big step! There is a lot to consider
when we are planning your pet’s surgery. Here is some information to help
you make wise decisions.
Click here . . .
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Special LibraryOur Special Library
is a collection of informative articles on a variety of health topics.
Click here . . .
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Discharge InstructionsClick here for
information on how to care for your pet at home.
Click here . . .
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Ivermectin Use in Dogs
Ivermectin is a widely-used anti-parasite drug
that has been around for decades. At low doses it
is effective against heartworm larvae, and in fact ivermectin is the active ingredient in Heartguard, the
well-known heartworm medication. At higher doses,
ivermectin is active against such things as demodectic
mange, and even though ivermectin has not been approved
by the FDA for this use, it is widely considered to be a
safe and effective treatment for demodectic mange.
In most patients, ivermectin is well-tolerated, and
there are no significant side-effects.
However, in certain families of dogs, a particular gene
mutation makes them react in an unusual way to ivermectin. In these individuals, we see things
like dialated pupils, depression, tremors, staggering,
siezures, and even death. At the low dose levels
found in Heartguard, ivermectin is safe for use even in
these susceptible dogs. However, at the higher
doses used in the treatment of demodectic mange, signs
of toxocity can occur.
Most dogs with the particular gene mutation are at least
part Collie. In general, we do not use ivermectin
at high doses at all in dogs known to be Collie, Border
Collie, or Australian Shepherd. However, it is
possible for a mixed-breed dog to have some Collie
breeding and not look particularly like a collie.
For this reason, in mixed breed dogs, we usually start
ivermectin therapy slowly in a test-dose fashion.
In dogs of unknown genealogy, we start with a very low
dose of ivermectin, one that it considered safe even in
Collies. We give the first dose, and watch
carefully for sign of problems, such as dialated pupils,
depression, tremors, staggering, or siezures. If
everything goes well, we give a little more the next
day, and watch closely for any adverse symptoms.
We keep increasing the dose a little each day until the
maximum dose is reached, and then we continue at that
dose until treatment is complete. If signs of
toxicity develop, we immediately stop giving the
ivermectin. Dogs medicated in this way generally
do not develop severe symptoms if they do react at all,
and they generally experience a full recovery in a short
time.
It often takes not days or weeks, but months of therapy
to cure severe demodectic mange. Ivermectin is
given until we feel that recovery has been complete,
however long that takes. Then a skin scraping is
performed to see if there are any mites left. We
do skin scrapings every two weeks until the dog has two
negative scrapings in a row. Only when the dog has
two negative scrapings in a row is it safe to stop
ivermectin therapy.
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