3-3-21: BEWARE of Seresto Flea & TICK collar: DEATHS may occur !

3-3-21

Buyers Please beware: 

according to recent reports by the United States Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA"), 

Seresto, one of the most popular flea and tick collars in the country, has been linked to 

hundreds of dog & cat deaths, tens of thousands of injured animals and has harmed hundreds 

of  humans. Seresto, developed by Bayer and now sold by Elanco, works by releasing small 

amounts of pesticide onto the animal for months at a time. The pesticide is supposed to kill 

fleas, ticks and other pests but be safe for cats and dogs. If you use this product, please be 

observant of any potential signs of unusual distress and lethargy by your pet. Seizures and 

death may result.

Our Lola has Passed On but Her Story will Continue to Help Others

It is with a very heavy heart that I have to report that our beloved Lola has passed on. She was 15 years and 3 months old and lived for more than 8 years after I stopped giving her Heartgard Medications for Flea & Tick and Heartworm. When she first started experiencing her awful seizures at age 6, I thought there was no way that she would live to see age 7 or, at best, 8. I thank God that my research prompted me to stop giving her the Heartgard medications. My family and I were able to enjoy another 8 years of our beautiful and loving Lola.

I credit natural medications with her longevity (Golden Retrievers typically have a maximum life span of 12 years!). In recent years I've purchased from www.Chewy.com their "Aches + Pains" by Vet's+Best & other natural pet remedies that have helped Lola tremendously. I cannot endorse highly enough their natural "Aches + Pains" medication for helping to ease Lola's old age hip pain and for helping her (and me!) to get a good night's sleep for the last 3 years of her life.  Here is the link for the affordable "Aches + Pains" on the Chewy.com website:

https://www.chewy.com/vets-best-aches-pains-dog-supplement/dp/45171

Lola: October 30, 2002 - January 24, 2018

Photograph © by Russel Alan Considine

www.RussConsidine.zenfolio.com

www.RussConsidine.blogspot.com

10-13-16: Sharing latest story of Seizures resulting from HeartGard Plus

Hi all - Thanks to Jody Smith for sharing another sad story of seizures resulting from HeartGard Plus:

"I have been reading your blog and just had to reply. 

My 8 1/2 year old black lab started having seizures in August, 2016.  It took me three months but I have finally seen the pattern.  Every seizure has happened with 24 to 48 hours after receiving the Heartgard Plus medicine.

Poor guy is taking phenobarbital and Keppra now.  I see the emergency vet for follow up tomorrow and will be sharing my discovery.  NO MORE HEARTGARD for my dog. I hope we find that he is seizure free for November and can start cutting back on the seizure medication." - Jody Smith

PS: my Golden Retriever Lola is still with us @ 14 + and has lived a happy life since I stopped giving her HeartGard products for flea & tick and heart worm more than 7 years ago! 

Latest regarding 'EaseSure' from PetAlive

Hi all - as mentioned in past posts I had been giving Lola monthly doses of 'EaseSure' from PetAlive. 

Again, Lola had stopped having seizures six years ago due primarily ( if not entirely) to my stoppage of her flea & tick and heart worm medications, and (based on online research) I had, at the same time, started giving her 'EaseSure' from PetAlive. Since the combination of all three was working, I was afraid to stop giving her the "Ease Sure". 

Recently however, due to 'EaseSure' from PetAlive not being available and on backorder, I decided to see if there was any negative result of NOT giving her the "EaseSure". This was 3 months ago and, to date, no signs of seizures. I do not know if Lola has gotten immune to the past seemingly positive effects of "EaseSure" or if her system has improved as a result of years of not giving her any flea tick and heart worm meds, or a combination of all of the above. In any event, heading toward age 14 (98 in Human year conversion) Lola still has no signs of seizure and Lola's only major concerns are all age-related: loss of most of her hearing and bad hips that prevent her from getting up by herself - unfortunately now, I always have to lift her rear hind area in order for her to get up. Once up, she is pretty much fine... I have now been giving her natural pain aids to help her daily routine and they seem to be helping her, no doubt in final months left on Planet Earth. 

Good luck to all and please do not hesitate to write should you have any questions: 

RussConsidine@gmail.com 

Seizure Cease: Letter from a Concerned Dog Owner

Hi all - I recently received the following letter from a reader whose dog had been experiencing seizures. The concerned owner just informed me that her decision to stop all vet-prescribed meds for flea/tick & heartworm are working and that her dog, thus far, appears to be seizure-free:

September 18, 2015
Hi Russ,

I just read your article and this sounds like what happened to my 5 pound Yorkie.  I have been giving her Heartguard and Frontline as recommended by my vet for the past 3 years. My dog is almost 8 years old, we adopted her, and have had her for about 3 years.  She was very healthy and never had any problems until recently.
About 4 months ago, a few days after I gave her the above meds, she had her first seizure.  When I asked my vet if Heartguard and Frontline  could cause a seizure , she said probably not, so I continued giving her these meds.  Last week I again gave my dog the Heartguard and Frontline and 4 days later, she had a full blown seizure.  Labs were drawn at the vet and everything came back normal.  The next day, she had another seizure.   I again asked my vet about these meds causing seizures and I was told she probably has idiopathic epilepsy.  I am a nurse and have done a lot of reading on epilepsy.  I don't believe she has this at all- I truly believe it's the Heartguard and Frontline.  I am not going to give her these meds again.  I hope she will be alright.  Thanks for your enlightening article.  It makes me feel like I know what I am talking about and what is best for my dog.  I'm throwing these meds away and praying her seizures will stop. - A.M.

Latest Heartguard/Dog Seizure Story

Doreen Grifin was kind enough to send me the following email today (7-30-15) about her Golden Retriever Jasmine:

"Hi Russ:

I found your story very interesting and wonder what happened over the next few years.

My 8 year old Golden had a seizure one day after Heartguard Plus and then another 6 days later, so my vet put her on Phenobarbital saying it was late on-set epilepsy.

Everything was fine (24 days) until I gave the next Heartguard Plus and she had seizures 2 days in a row, 24 hours after Heartguard, even though she was on Phenobarbital!

I am not going to give her any more, even though my vet said Heartguard has nothing to do with seizures.  She has a Seresto flea collar, so I took that off as well. 

She took Heartguard with no problems for 7 years, but I believe as you do, that over time, they can develop issues with it. 

Thank you for sharing your story. Doreen Grifin"

My response to Doreen:

"Hi Doreen - I am happy to report that Lola is 13 years old and experiencing only old age related problems. She has been seizure free for six years since I totally stopped giving her any of the Heartguard flea & tick and heart worm medications. Unfortunately, I know nothing about Phenobarbital. 

I have been giving her a half tablet (recommended dosage via Vet is a full tablet) of Carprofen which helps her sleep better (and me!) during the night as it is a pain relief aid for her bad hips. Thus far she has had no ill effects of this medication which I have been giving her for the past 6 months. I hope that you and Jasmine have a seizure-free future! Take care and big hugs for your Golden Jasmine from Lola and me :-) Russ"

Another Story of Confirmation

To all concerned Animal lovers: here is another testimony to the possible link of Frontline Plus and Heartgard products as a potential source of seizures in certain breeds of dogs. Thanks very much to Lisa Perna and her beautiful dog Maggie:

"Hi Russ!

Just wanted you to know how helpful and comforting it was to find your blog late one night, back in January, when researching why our dog, Maggie, was suddenly having seizures.

Like you, I began suspecting the Frontline Plus and Heartgard applications that we were giving her on the same day, every month.  To determine which one (or both?) was giving her a problem, I decided to give them two weeks apart.  Each application, of both meds, resulted in seizures a day or two after application - sometimes within hours.  I then decided not to give her any more monthly doses, and make an appointment with our vet to discuss our concerns. After stopping the meds, and while waiting for the vet appointment, Maggie went 40 days without a seizure.  Once at the appointment, our vet was not sympathetic to our concerns - in fact, she was pretty belligerent.  She said her Frontline rep, who supplied her office, had never told her of a problem. (ha! really?!)   And that she had never heard of a problem with Heartgard either, in all her years of being a vet. She warned us of discontinuing the Heartgard, the severity of heartworms in our area, Florida, and encouraged us to resume giving it to her.  She also recommended that if Maggie ever had a seizure again, to take her to an emergency clinic right away; that a blood test could be done that would help determine the causes of Maggie's seizures.

So, we gave her Heartgard that Wednesday night, and very early Saturday morning, she had a seizure.  We waited until the seizure was over, gathered her up, and brought her immediately to an emergency clinic for bloodwork.  I've attached a copy of Maggie's bloodwork from that morning.  After hearing our reasons for bringing Maggie in, and our concerns of Maggie possibly having seizures in reaction to Heartgard and Frontline, the vet handed us the blood results and told us Maggie's bloodwork looked normal.  Later that night, I went online to research Maggie's test results, and this is what I discovered.  The high RBC, HCT and HGB are indicative of dehydration.  I have since learned that seizures do cause dogs to become quickly dehydrated, and in our nervousness in getting her to the hospital, we hadn't taken the time to give her water.  But most alarming, was her very, very low WBC.  This indicates an overwhelming chemical or toxic poisoning.  And why the vet didn't see this, or comment on this, I don't know!

Monday morning, I went back to our regular vet - to fill her in on Maggie's weekend seizure and to show her the bloodwork.  And she was still not convinced - Amazingly, she said these results could be from 'unclean'' blood draws, or a machine that might not be calibrated correctly.  To say this has been frustrating, is an understatement!

I also wanted to let you know that Washington State College of Veternary Medicine, www.vetmed.wsu.edu/depts-VCPL/index.aspx, is currently mailing out test kits to dog owners who would like to test their dogs for the MDR1 mutation gene.  Dogs that have this gene mutation are known to have adverse drug reactions to doses of ivermectin (in Heartgard), loperamide, and some anticancer drugs.  They send out a cheek swab test, you return it with payment of $70.00, and results are emailed in about a week.

Even though the site states, "While the dose of ivermectin used to prevent heartworm infection is SAFE in dogs with the mutation (6 micrograms per kilogram), higher doses, such as those used for treating mange (300-600 micrograms per kilogram) will cause neurological toxicity in dogs that are homozygous for the MDR1 mutation (mutant/mutant) and can cause toxicity in dogs that are heterozygous for the mutation (mutant/normal)." , we decided to have Maggie tested; looking for any possible clue for the seizures.  Some breeds are more apt to have this gene mutation, but we don't really know much about Maggie's background.  She was a stray that showed up on our doorstep and she looks like a lab, pitbull mix  - but you never know!  Results came back Normal/Normal - "These dogs do not carry the mutation, and will not pass on the mutation to their offspring."

All this to say, Russ, I also agree with your comment, "...thought should be given to researching the possible term limitations of prescribing and recommending these medications once a dog lives past a certain age."  For our Maggie - We adopted her when she was approximately two years old.  We gave her Frontline Plus and Heartgard on the same day every month for two years without any noticable adverse effects (to us).  It has been in just the past few months, that she seems to be having seizures after administering these meds.  We have decided to discontinue their use, and hope for the best.

We have also decided to try the 'EaseSure' from PetAlive that you mentioned using.  Maggie's been on it for about three months.  We stopped giving it to her at one point, wondering if it really was doing anything.  And after three missed doses, a day and a half, she had a seizure.  So she's back on it; it does seem to have its benefits.

We sure hope Maggie will follow Lola's example and continue on, seizure free, if we stop using Frontline Plus and Heartgard.  -Not very many answers, lots of heartache, but wanted to thank you, Russ, for the 'heads up' with the blog.  As we share our experiences, hopefully answers will be found.  

Hoping you and Lola are doing well!


Sincerely,

Lisa and Maggie" HPIM2148.JPG