Advantage now available over-the-counter?
 

Does anyone know if Advantage (imidacloprid) topical flea control is available OTC [B]in Canada[/B]? If yes, where have you seen it for sale & how much was it?

I read about it on Dr. Patty Khuly's Doolittler blog:

Link [url]http://www.dolittler.com/2010/02/17/Picking.your.poison.News.and.notes.on.Advantagenow.OTC.html[/url]

I plan on asking our vet, but I was wondering if anyone knows if it is or will be avail. OTC.

Thanks

It's not already? :confused: I live in US but it's been OTC here for... well as long as I can remember. Same as Frontline and Capstar. There are no restrictions on any of that stuff, just more involved ones like Revolution or Profender (dewormer).

I have also seen people able to buy Advantage Muliti online if they get it shipped in from Australia where it is sold as Advocate.

Out of curiosity now how much does Advantage cost in Canada?

We get ours from our vet, I don't think it's available OTC here in Canada, but I could be wrong. The price varies depending on the animal's weight. A box with 6 doses for cats 10 lbs and over costs around $60, approx. $10 a month.

Huh! Well that's interesting. I just checked the on-line (and in bricks and mortar in Toronto) place I ordered Advantage from last year, over the counter without a Rx, and it's not there. Neither is the Advantage Plus I used to get which did require a Rx. Feline.

As far as I know you could always get Advantage over the counter because it does not require a Rx. It's the Plus version you couldn't get.

In case you are curious about other meds on-line, or in person, here is the link to the place I use. Sometimes I order on-line, sometimes I'm visiting down there and go in person. I find it reassuring that the place is a real pharmacy.

[url]http://www.petpharm.org/index-can.htm[/url]

ETA: oops, I mean multi. Either way, PetPharm no longer lists either form of Advantage.

[QUOTE=Longblades;888068]As far as I know you could always get Advantage over the counter because it does not require a Rx. It's the Plus version you couldn't get.

In case you are curious about other meds on-line, or in person, here is the link to the place I use. Sometimes I order on-line, sometimes I'm visiting down there and go in person. I find it reassuring that the place is a real pharmacy.

[url]http://www.petpharm.org/index-can.htm[/url][/QUOTE]

When I say OTC, I mean available in grocery & department stores. It would be better for pet owners to be able to buy Advantage instead of the other spot-on flea treatments, some which have lead to pet deaths and many allergic reactions (our cat had a bad reaction also. See [URL="http://www.hartzvictims.org/"]hartzvictims.org/[/URL])

Thank you for the Canadian PetPharm link. I'll check them out. I'm glad to hear that they're a real pharmacy as some people have reported counterfeit products being sold online.

Bought two boxes at our vet today of the Advantage 18 cat (6 tubes).

$68.54 each box. Two boxes, with tax: $154.90.

I know we used to be able to get a bottle of topical flea control from the vet where we used to live. When I called the office today, they said they didn't sell it like that anymore. I left a message to ask if the vet could call me about it.

I'd like to know why it's not available in bulk vials, OTC or even online from PetPharm. If the vet doesn't know, then I'm going to ask the manufacturer. It's made by Bayer.

From the Dolittler.com blog, I've learned that imidacloprid is available as a powder in a product to be mixed up and applied to trees & shrubs for insect control. I feel that it is worthwhile to find out if a pharmacy could possibly mix it to the proper concentration for us to use for flea control. If we had instructions, my mom, a nurse, said we could probably do it ourselves.

Even knowing the proper concentration to mix it to, I would have to have a vet's opinion that using it would not be any riskier than regular Advantage.

If I find some answers, I'll post them here.

It's not just our vet that has stopped selling the doses individually then? Our vets' changed their staff aand management policies, so I thought having to buy a whole box at once was just part of their new policies. We can get an individual dose if one of the staff applies it, but that costs more.(of course)

Advantage at petpharm
 

I just phoned the number provided at the website petpharm from one of the above posts and the price quoted for a six pack for cats over nine pounds was $55.04, plus $10.00 delivery for a total of $65.04, a much better price than any vet I called, even the ones that didn't require a consultation before selling it to you. Seems like a reasonable deal but I'll bet there are even better deals out there but be careful, there are definetly some unscrupulous sorts out there who may take your cash and send you a $1 flea comb! Lol!!

[QUOTE=Selectrick;1023302]I just phoned the number provided at the website petpharm from one of the above posts and the price quoted for a six pack for cats over nine pounds was $55.04, plus $10.00 delivery for a total of $65.04, a much better price than any vet I called, even the ones that didn't require a consultation before selling it to you. Seems like a reasonable deal but I'll bet there are even better deals out there but be careful, there are definetly some unscrupulous sorts out there who may take your cash and send you a $1 flea comb! Lol!![/QUOTE]

PetPharm has it? I just checked their website and it's still not on it. Darn, I should have phoned them. My Vet charges much more too, and they do still have some other things I need.

If you are worried about counterfeit drugs, and you should be, many pharma websites will show you what a legitimate package and the meds inside should look like. I found that some also show you what common counterfeits look like.

In Ontario you may legally purchase any pet med that requires a Rx from either a VEt or a licensed Pharmacist (as is the case at Petpharm) and still be compensated for any problem with the med by the company that makes the med. My understanding from talking to one of the Vets at one of the big pharma (Merck or Merial, I think it was Merial) is that in the U.S. this does not apply and you are on your own uness you buy from a Vet.

You should be cautious with who you deal with. When I looked into this some years ago I did find an on-line pet pharma company claiming to use a Vet, in Winnipeg, and it turned out that no such VEt was licensed to practice in Manitoba. Obviously I did not deal with that company.

Last year I discovered a flea on Vinnie+flea dirt,I bought 4 tubes of Advantage from my vet,for 2 cats/2 months it was $58 something.
I never use it unless I discover fleas.
This year no fleas:thumbs up