Natural Heartworm Preventatives

[TulipRoxy]

Does anyone have any experience using natural heartworm preventatives? I feed raw, vaccinate minimally, and dislike using chemical products on my pet so I have been researching natural alternatives to the traditional Sentinel or Heartguard. However, I would like to know that these products are effective before I start to use them. Here are a couple of websites, let me know what you think!

http://www.heartwormfree.com/heartworm_prevention.htm

http://www.banditsbuddies.com/maintenance.shtml


This is an interesting article on heartworms written by a holistic vet http://www.homeovet.net/content/lifestyle/section4.html

[clm]

I'm not sure that heartworm is something I would want to take a chance with personally. I hear you about not wanting to use chemicals....I'm not a big fan myself, but heartworm is just too dangerous to play with IMO.

clm

[Frenchy]

Originally Posted by clm

I'm not sure that heartworm is something I would want to take a chance with personally. I hear you about not wanting to use chemicals....I'm not a big fan myself, but heartworm is just too dangerous to play with IMO.

clm

Same here. I found out that my Bailey was heartworm positive after I adopted him , it's not fun to treat.

[otter]

Aslan mentioned to me that she uses black walnut extract for her doggies. Hopefully she will stop by and she can share her experience.

We're doing the chemical thing (AdvantagePlus) this year as Nolie had hookworm already and I just went with what the vet recommended

[kathryn]

Ivermectin is very safe and has been around for years. I would absolutely not take a risk with heartworms.

Advantage multi and revolution are both very good products as well, but if you are looking for the most low-tech option, regular Heartgard or Triheart is all you need.

[aslan]

Originally Posted by otter

Aslan mentioned to me that she uses black walnut extract for her doggies. Hopefully she will stop by and she can share her experience.

We're doing the chemical thing (AdvantagePlus) this year as Nolie had hookworm already and I just went with what the vet recommended

Poof and i appear...yes i use black walnut extract on my babies or should i say in..first off make sure it is extract and not pure black walnut,,you can get it at any health store. The dosage is on the bottle for humans by weight, just figure out your puppers weight and dose accordingly...Black walnut extract has been used for years for preventing and treating parasites in both humans and animals..

After reading what most heartworm treatments are i was a little leary,,after seeing revolution eat into a laminate floor,,became more than leary. The black walnut also deters skidders from biting your dog in the first place as they don't smell as appealing to them. I really wouldn't buy an over the internet treatment from an unknown source. Google black walnut extract and decide for yourself. if you have a naturopath vet near you that you can call discuss with them.

[TulipRoxy]

Originally Posted by aslan

Poof and i appear...yes i use black walnut extract on my babies or should i say in..first off make sure it is extract and not pure black walnut,,you can get it at any health store. The dosage is on the bottle for humans by weight, just figure out your puppers weight and dose accordingly...Black walnut extract has been used for years for preventing and treating parasites in both humans and animals..

After reading what most heartworm treatments are i was a little leary,,after seeing revolution eat into a laminate floor,,became more than leary. The black walnut also deters skidders from biting your dog in the first place as they don't smell as appealing to them. I really wouldn't buy an over the internet treatment from an unknown source. Google black walnut extract and decide for yourself. if you have a naturopath vet near you that you can call discuss with them.

Thanks! One of the prevention regimes reccomended black walnut along with Artemisia which is a combination of wormwood and mugwort. The other treatment contains hawthorn, garlic, and black seed among other things. I am a little sceptical on that one, I'll have to do more research.

For me, its really hard to decide what to do. I don't like the idea of using an antiparasitic product every month on my pets. If it kills parasites it has to have some long term effect on their health... And theres only a small chance they would ever get heartworm as we live in the city and I seldom even see a mosquito. Anyways, thanks for the information. I will continue to research!

[aslan]

the black walnut with the Artemsia is perfect,,but i would get it at a health store. I would stay away from the one with the garlic..some say it is toxic so i'd stay on the safe side. The heartworm treatment is a milder form of what they were to give your animal if it actually had heartworm. I prefer to go natural over chemical.

[TulipRoxy]

Thanks! I will check my health food store to see if they have these products..the Black Walnut I am sure they have but the Artemesia I'm not sure. If I can find them locally I would prefer, I always get killed on shipping charges when I order from the states!

Garlic isn't toxic in low doses but they already get small amount with their food everyday.

Do you give the Black Walnut everyday?