Interceptor Dosing Question (willow)

Callie I respect you a LOT and would trust you on a ton of things, but I have to say that halving the prescribed dosage is an issue people need to be discussing with their VET before taking action. 

I responded to the OP's question with info I had from my vet very specific to her situation, but this talk of halving the tablets is really scary to someone who lives in an area where heartworm is very prevalent.  We had a heartworm clinic this week and out of 100 dogs tested almost 10% turned up positive!!

also - with halving the pills - there is no guarentee that each half with have the same exact amount of medication - I would NOT halve, it is not worth the risk.

Honestly it's tough to imagine an area worse for heartworm than Florida -- of dogs that go thru rescue here approximately 93% are heartworm positive when they come from Animal Control or the humane society. 

I don't disagree at all with speaking with your vet about it -- and none of my vets (neither holistic nor the 'regular' vet) have any problem whatsoever with my dividing tablets.  Early on there was a concern with medication being distributed in the tablets, but  that is apparently not the case any more (again according to my vet).  And I **DO** get my Interceptor FROM the vet.

However ... my point is this.  Interceptor actually guarantees their product for not just heartworm prevention but also hooks and whips.  If you look at the dose chart for either milbemycin or ivermectin (which is what's in heartguard) the amount of the drug varies for the type of parasite it is going to be effective against.  The dose for hooks/whips is far far greater than the dose for heartworm microfilaria.  The dose that is used in that package is sufficient to dose the animal at the upper range of size against the hardier parasites (hooks/whips). 

The original post was talking about a dog who is on the lower end of the 'range'. Literally just 2-3 pounds over the low end of the dose range.  By all means, do whatever your vet says, but remember these drugs are all dosed "per pound".  They are simply packaged in a size that is sufficient for dogs in the upper range. 

In any event the 'range' per pound for milbemycin is something like .23 mg to .43 mg. per pound.  That takes into account that with milbemycin it's about double the typical dose for hooks/whips as opposed to heartworm microfilaria.  But milbemycin is simply dosed far more liberally because it is so much more easily tolerated (the statistic that the PIll Book gives is that milbemycin is well-tolerated at up to more than 100 times the normal dose and even in collies it's tolerated at over 10 times the dose).  But that's one of the reasons why the ranges are so large and why they guarantee the product for more than just heartworm "prevention".

I'm honestly not talking about a short dose -- particularly not for a dog that is at the low end of the package stated range.  AS LONG AS we're talking about heartworm microfilaria.  Now if you're using it to control hooks/whips that IS another story entirely.  Then you need to stay within the guidelines.

with halving the pills - there is no guarentee that each half with have the same exact amount of medication - I would NOT halve, it is not worth the risk.

This is absolutely true. I have a friend who works closely in the pharm industry and he says that although they make an effort to distribute product evenly, there are some formulas that it's more difficult. These include chewables and (of course) any time-release type of pill.

I split Program in half since it's not a life-or-death thing and it's a solid rather than chewable pill. But I weigh my puppies every month and get the correct single dose of Interceptor for their size direct from the vet. Of course my other dogs are all weighed every month and I give them injectable invermectin orally dosed to their exact weight. I'm not a control freak or anything.