What Is The Difference?
Q. What is the difference between Frontline Plus, Advantix and Advantage?
A.
All of these products are monthly topically applied to your pet's skin at the back of the neck. All will start to work within 24 hours of application.
Advantage contains an ingredient called imidacloprid, which kills adult fleas, as well as flea larvae on cats and dogs for up to a month after application. It also has a claim to kill lice for up to 6 weeks in dogs.
The same manufacturer as Advantage makes Advantix. This product also contains imidacloprid, so has the same activity against fleas as Advantage. In addition, it also contains permethrin, to repel and kill ticks, mosquitoes and sand flies for a month. Permethrin is toxic to cats, so Advantix is only for use in dogs.
Frontline Plus contains two ingredients, which kills adult fleas and flea larvae on cats and dogs. In addition, it is effective in killing ticks for a full month.
Q. What is the difference between Frontline Plus and Frontline Top Spot?
A.
Frontline Top Spot and Frontline Plus both contain fipronil, so they offer the same killing activity against adult fleas and ticks. However, Frontline Plus also contains an ingredient called methoprene, which kills flea eggs and larvae. Frontline Plus controls all stages of the flea life cycle, and aids in environmental control of fleas. Owners generally report much better flea control when using Frontline Plus.
Q. What is the difference between Heartgard and the Heartgard generic?
A.
Both the generic and name brand Heartgard product contain the same ingredient, ivermectin, at the same dose. So these products are the same in terms of safety and effectiveness. In Australia, generics (and the manufacturing facilities in which they are made) are rigorously checked and tested in order to be registered and sale of the product allowed. So you can be assured of the quality of the product when purchasing it. When used as directed, it will provide the same protection for your dog against heartworm infection, as Heartgard will.
Please note that the generic heartworm product we offer is the same as Heartgard, not Heartgard Plus. As such, it prevents heartworms but does not control roundworms and hookworms like Heartgard Plus does. Please note that both the Heartgard and generic Heartgard that we offer come in hard tablets, not meat-flavoured chewable like Heartgard Plus.
What is the difference between Revolution, Frontline Plus, Advantix and Advantage?
All are effective flea treatments, which contain different ingredients, which means some of them have activity against other parasites also. They are all once monthly topical treatments.
Revolution kills adult fleas and prevents the egg stages of fleas hatching. It also provides heartworm prevention and treats ear mites in cats and dogs. It treats sacroptes mites and the American Dog Tick in dogs and intestinal worms - roundworms and hookworms - in cats.
Frontline will kill adult fleas as well as larval and egg stages of fleas. It also has activity against all 4 major ticks in cats and dogs.
Advantage kills adult and larval flea stages in both cats and dogs.
Advantix kills adult and larval flea stages and repels and kills ticks, mosquitoes and sandflies for a month. It also kills lice for 6 weeks. This product is only for use in dogs as one of the ingredients is toxic to cats.
Which flea product is best for your pet depends on where you live, the time of year - and so which other parasites you need to be concerned about - and if you are using any other medications to prevent or treat them (for example another heartworm treatment). All four are great products, which are safe and effective to use.
Q. What is the difference between Heartgard, Revolution and Sentinel?
A.
All three of these products (as well as the Heartgard generic medications) are highly effective heartworm preventatives. They all contain different ingredients, so some also treat other parasites.
In addition to heartworm prevention, Revolution kills adult fleas and prevents egg stages of fleas hatching. It also treats ear mites in cats and dogs. It treats sacroptes mites and the American Dog Tick in dogs and intestinal worms - roundworms and hookworms - in cats. It is a once monthly topical liquid applied to the skin. In dogs, it will be necessary to treat for intestinal worms with another product.
Heartgard, and the generic medications containing ivermectin (the active ingredient in Heartgard) prevent heartworm disease. PetDrugs sells these as once monthly tablets. Heartgard has no effect on fleas or intestinal worms, so it will be necessary to treat for these with another product, or products.
Sentinel prevents heartworm disease, and treats roundworms, whipworms and hookworms in dogs. It contains an additional ingredient that breaks the flea life cycle by inhibiting flea egg development. It may be necessary to kill the adult fleas with another product in addition to using Sentinel.
Which product you use depends on the time of year, the areas you live in, and so which other parasites you need to control and whether you wish to combine the heartworm prevention with other parasite treatments. All of these are very good products which are both safe and effective.
Q. What is the difference between Heartgard Plus and Heartgard?
A.
Heartgard Plus contains ivermectin and pyrantel. Heartgard tablets contain only ivermectin. Both products prevent heartworm disease in exactly the same way and with the same reliability, when dosed once a month as recommended. However, Heartgard Plus also controls roundworms and hookworms in dogs, due to the added ingredient. When using Heartgard, it may therefore be necessary to treat for these intestinal worms also, as advised by your veterinarian.
Q. How does Capstar differ from the topical treatments?
A.
Capstar is a tablet that kills fleas rapidly. When a pet swallows Capstar, the active component (nitenpyram) is absorbed into the bloodstream quickly, so when fleas bite your pet, they get a toxic dose of the chemical with their blood meal and die. Fleas start to die within 15-30 minutes of ingesting the chemical. All fleas will be killed by 24 hours. However, this does not protect pets for a month. It is excreted from the pet's body within 48 hours.
The topical treatments, such as Frontline, Advantage or Revolution are effective for a month after treatment and most will kill a wider range of parasites than just fleas.
