You may have missed the "comments are moderated" note when you hit publish all those times. I too agree with Bob and anonymous I decided [btw: my heartworm pills ARE scored, so even according to your comment. Also, just to note: I get the pooch tested every year with the blood test and it is heartworm FREE and in the uptmost "state of perfection" according to my locally top-rated, 8 years in a row vet.
If it's scored, it's meant to be split! That means both sides of the pill contain equal amounts of medication. Most heartworm medications are relatively safe and don't cause any side effects, but they certainly could for some dogs. Most people are probably not going to come across any problems by splitting heartworm medicine, but it's just a note of precaution that it COULD turn out to be a problem.
And the manufacturer of the product would not pay for heartworm treatment if the medication was not given properly. It sounds like your pooch is very well taken care of and is unlikely to experience any problems though : Glad they are healthy!
I have to agree with Bob here as a chemical engineer familiar with manufacturing practices and regulations. If the pills are inhomogeneous in such macro scale, they won't pass quality regulation.
I don't know vet pharmaceutical process first hand, but ensuring the same amount of active ingredients in each tablet would be much more difficult. By the way I had many doctors and pharmacists telling me to half or even quarter medications that are not scored. Scored pill is just an aid to help you split the pills more evenly, not a requirements for homogeneous medicines.
This might be true for the chewables, but not for pills. That would not work if the active ingredient wasn't distributed even throughout the pill. Any drug that is not scored is not meant to be split for these reasons. Since yours are scored, it should be fine. My generic zoloft pills aren't scored, but yet my bottle definitively says "Take one and a half pills per day by mouth".
Scoring is not essential to breakage or prescribing requirements. My pom is 5 lbs. Spitting the up to 25lb dose in half makes sense to me. It is a chemical and contains toxicity. He'll probably be fine, but you should just know that there is a small risk involved since the medication isn't scored. There is no magic in scoring pills As another person noted in this thread scoring is a service to make splitting easier So the questions raised here remain.
How is enough medicine for a 50 pound dog not too much medicine for a 25 pound dog? If active ingredients are so haphazardly distributed that half of a pill made for a 50 pound dog might not be effective for a 25 pound dog, isn't it logical to assume some of the pills might contain no active ingredients at all?
Or, perhaps even worse, they might contain much larger doses than would be safe for small dogs at the low end of the weight-distribution range? I agree, it IS all about the money. I have been splitting a lb tablet between my 2 corgis that weigh approx.
One just turned 14 and the other one is I live in mosquito county Alabama and my dogs are outside quite a bit. To be on the safe side I have them tested every year. They are both heartworm free.
Has saved me a tremendous amount of money over the years as I now own 10 corgis. They are mixed thoroughly before being packaged.
Yes they are. But, they are not scored medications. The Heartgard product appears to be a batch mixed product which is then extruded into the little blocks they sell it in. It is highly unlikely that they inject the med into each block.
You will notice that there is no prohibition of splitting on their web site. My "kids" are at 37 lb-right in the middle of their weight for a dose, so I feel that I have a little leeway in that regard. Ann, thank you for your article, as it does get people to think first and make an informed decision. In a later comment you'll see I happen to agree that the whole batch is homogeneous and thus OK to split.
As regards splitting: my own human dosage of blood pressure medication does not match a whole pill, so my doctor has me cut them in half to take 1. No scoring on the tablets! So even at the higher standard for human meds, "don't split unscored tablets" is more of a suggestion than a rule. Yes it is, and we direct clients to cut other unscored medications as well.
No need to judge people of splitting medicine and implying they are cheap or crazy. They most likely have small dogs and are worried of overdosing.
Too much of anything can be a problem. There are many side effects of Ivermectin. Overpaying plus overdosing is just as crazy if you think of it. The controversy is the weight range on some product is too big.
Read more about the optimal dosing and prep the medicine correctly. Too much assumption can't make the right conclusion. Don't worry I'm not judging anyone : It's simply just a thought that some people may have not considered before.
So, for people meds I would imagine it would be rather expected no score on a pill in the lowest effective dose or that is so bitter one wouldn't want to taste it without the protective outer layer Secondarily, time-release pills are meant to dissolve slowly, cutting it would expose the center making it dissolve more quickly, causing you to get a much larger dose all at one time.
Obviously, if no score, best to check with the pharmacist if you have some reason to cut your pill. That being said I agree with other's above, if the manufacturer can't assure one half of the pill has the same amount of meds as the other half, how can they assure this one pill doesn't have zero meds and this other one doesn't have twice the amount.
Personally, I think it is highly unlikely that they mix the filler with the meds one single pill at a time. Many vets familiar with this advise owners of very small dogs to split the pill. For larger dogs a small dog dose of Interceptor is usually approved.
We give the smallest dose for our 70lb pittie as per FDA and Safeheart guidelines. You can find info about it on the FDA site to print out if you have an unknowledgeable vet. Ours highly condones the Safeheart dose. The less pesticides, the healthier the pet. Also, all heartworm medicine was intended for administration every 45 days based in gestation of the worms. We administer every 45 days based on this FDA study and our vets recommendations.
And don't forget the milk thistle for 10 days after. Smash up the medicine cube, mince it further with a razor blade, then stir it up good and divide the pile.
Problem solved. The brown 6-pack 2. The 5. I know in human meds, you can cut scored tablets because the medicine is distributed evenly, but you should NOT cut unscored tabs. Does this hold true with doggie meds? Are the Interceptor tabs scored, and if so, can I get the larger sized tab and cut it in half? It really irks me that twice as much of the med costs only a tiny bit more.
Irks me in human meds, too! These effects were all transient and puppies returned to normal within 24 to 48 hours. No effects were observed in puppies given the recommended dose of milbemycin oxime 0. How long does Interceptor Plus take to kill worms?
This medication should take effect within one to two days to create a layer of protection against these internal parasites. When given monthly, the oral treatment protects dogs against recurring flea and tick infestations. Nexgard is safe to use for puppies from 8 weeks of age. Interceptor Spectrum is a highly palatable tasty chew that controls heartworm infection in dogs.
The monthly tasty chew prevents and controls heartworms in dogs. The key advantage of Interceptor is that it is safe for use in cats. Sentinel differs from Interceptor in that it contains a second active ingredient - Lufenuron. This ingredient works to break the life cycle of fleas. It stops developing flea larvae and eggs, but it does not eliminate existing flea infestations.
You may be surprised to still see live worms in your dog's feces after worming them, but this is normal. While this can be an unpleasant image, it's actually a good thing — it means the worms are no longer living inside your dog! Dogs can smell the medication.
Place the medication in a small amount of wet food, if they like it. Use a bit of peanut butter or cream cheese to disguise the pill. Plain yogurt is another good food that can mask medication. A piece of cheese, hot dog or liverwurst can conceal the pill.
Most peanut butter is safe for dogs to eat , and in moderation peanut butter can be an excellent source of protein and healthy fats, vitamins B and E, and niacin. Firstly, let's talk about when it is okay to split your dog's parasite prevention chew, tablet or topical treatment.
The medication has different packet sizes for specific weight ranges. If the brand produces a weight range for 'small dogs' and another for 'large dogs' it's always best to stick to the range that suits your pet. But why? Manufacturers provide a number of reasons why you shouldn't split medication that isn't scored with a clear line. These include: 1. Uneven dosing - if the medication doesn't contain a scored line, there is no guarantee that the medication will be evenly halved when you break it - no matter how careful you are.
This increases the risk of over- or under-dosing. Overdosing your pet can potentially lead to advserse affects, while underdosing can put your pet at risk of potentially fatal parasite infection.
The distribution of medication within the preventative product is not guaranteed. Many drug manufacturers cannot guarantee that the active ingredient is evenly distributed throughout the inner core of the chew or tablet. So, even if you split a chew evenly, the amount of active ingredient may not be present in even amounts in each half.
This is particularly important with chews that contains more than one drug - for example, flea and worming combinations that contain one medication for fleas, and another for worming.
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